We are delighted to bring you this report of our
impacts, activities, and partnerships around the world
for the past 12 months. We have given it the title
"Global Research for Local Livelihoods" to reflect our
truly worldwide research program-maize and/or
wheat are major food crops in all regions of the
developing world-and our emphasis on making a
difference in the lives of poor people.

If we cannot improve the livelihoods of people where

CIMMYT Today

It is interesting to reflect in our 35th year on the
important changes that have influenced CIMMYT
and our work today. They are many: external and
internal, scientific and political, people-related and
environment-related. As I consider my six-plus years
at CIMMYT, it is clear to me that the need for our
work has never been greater, but the work has
changed and must continue to change to meet new
needs and more complex challenges.

Thirty-five years of endeavor have seen many
milestones and many internationally recognized
impacts from CIMMYT's work with its partners.
Together we have bred wheat and maize varieties and
developed agronomic practices that have secured
larger, more reliable harvests, raised incomes, and
helped sustain natural resources. We have developed
research initiatives whose relevance and vitality
reflect our extensive field experience and our links
with advanced research institutes. We continue to
strengthen scientific capacity in developing countries.
Our researchers are widely recognized for their
contributions to scientific knowledge and human
development. The bottom line, however, is that our
mission is not finished, and much remains to be done
if the gross inequities between the North and the
South are to be addressed effectively.

'The specific use of the L.-r i i,, ; gene from
Norin 10 has ittr,.. i thefood supply of
one-quarter of the people of the world-one
billion plus,'said Garrison Wilkes [of the
Department of F,. 1, I. University of
Massachusetts]. 'And for over 100 million it
has been the margin of survival.' A single
gene from a ;... ;11,, 1i. unimportant variety
of wheat has saved 100 million lives.

New varieties of maize and wheat are still important,
as they are the easiest way for poor farmers to adopt
new technology. The more improvements we can put
into that new grain-enhanced nutrient content and

a

disease resistance, greater drought and heat
tolerance-the more new technologies the poor farmer
can adopt just by changing varieties. However, our
research paradigm at CIMMYT in the 21st century is
now G x E x M x P (germplasm x environment x
management x people). The new challenge is to get
the best varieties incorporated into sustainable
farming systems (M) focusing on the participation and
livelihoods of people (P). "P" can also emphasize the
importance of sound policies in the relief of human
suffering. This "plots to plate" approach has seen our
research portfolio shift from a program-focused
agenda to a project-focused agenda that brings
together a broader mix of skills, disciplines, and
partners to ensure continuing impact in farmers'
hit ld-. Ii, ,,ilcn [Ln n,,L Ld.t', n ltu liit.'l,_C-t d

environment, and the global situation will all ensure
that CIMMYT in the coming five to ten years will
be much different from what it is today. Who knows
what will come from the tragic events in the United
States on 1 September? Some fear a hdening of
attitudes between North and South on many issues.

Such a scenario would be in itself devastating,
as their has never been a more important
time to adds global inequities. Let us all
work together in supporting the latter

Science-wise there is little doubt in my mind
that new technologies will play an inorasingly
important part in contributing to solutions that
improve the livelihoods of the resource-poor.
Biotechnology will be an important facet of
this fort, with functional genomics being
perhaps the area of most exciting potential.

This is my last message as Director General of
CIMMYT, as next year's Annual Report will be
the first for a new leadeWhen I leave, I will
have spent seven years in the most demanding
and challenging job I've ever had. It is an honor
and a privilege to work for CIMMYTto enjoy
friendships throughout the world, but above
all to play a part inducing inequity, and
reaching the unreached. Thank you for your
wonderful support.

Director General

Acronyms and Abbreviations

ABC
ACIAR

ACT
ADB
AFLP
AMS
Bt
CGIAR

CIMMYT

CIP
CIRAD

CRC-MPB

DAA
DFID
DGIS

ETTA
FONTAGRO

GIS
GRMN
ICAR
ICARDA

ICRAF

ICRISAT

IDIAP

IDRC

IFAD

ILRI
INIFAP

INTA

IRD

IRMA
IRRI
IWMI
KARI
NARC

NARS
NGO
NRG
OFWM

PRA
RWC

SADLF

SDC
UNTAET

SAID

WANA

Applied Biotechnology Center, CIMMYT
Australian Centre for International Agricultural
Research
Almanac Characterization Tool
Asian Development Bank
Amplified fragment length polymorphism
Africa Maize Stress Project
Bacillus thuningiensis
Consultative Group on International Agricultural
Research
International Maize and Wheat Improvement
Center
International Potato Center
Centre de Cooperation Internationale en
Recherche Agronomique pour le
Developpement, France
Collaborative Research Centre for Molecular
Plant Breeding
Department of Agricultural Affairs, East Timor
Department for International Development, UK
Directorate-General for International
Cooperation, the Netherlands
East Timor Transitional Administration
Regional Fund for Agricultural Technology, Latin
America and the Caribbean
Geographic information systems
Global Rust Monitoring Network
Indian Council of Agricultural Research
International Center for Agricultural Research in
the Dry Areas
International Centre for Research in
Agroforestry
International Center for Research in the Semi-
Arid Tropics
Institute de Investigacion Agropecuaria de
Panama
International Development Research Centre,
Canada
International Fund for Agricultural
Development
International Livestock Research Institute
Insituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales
y Agropecuarias, Mexico
Institute Nicaraguense de Tecnologia
Agropecuaria
Institute de Recherche pour le Developpement,
France
Insect Resistant Maize for Africa
International Rice Research Institute
International Water Management Institute
Kenya Agricultural Research Institute
National Agricultural Research Council, Pakistan
Nepal Agricultural Research Council
National agricultural research system
Non-governmental organization
Natural Resources Group, CIMMYT
On-Farm Water Management Directorate,
Punjab, Pakistan
Participatory rural assessment
Rice-Wheat Consortium for the Indo-Gangetic
Plains
Southern Africa Drought and Low Soil Fertility
Project
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
United Nations Transitional Administration in
East Timor
United States Agency for International
Development
West Asia and North Africa

International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center
(CIMMYT) 2001. All rights reserved. Printed in Mexico.
Responsibility for this publication rests solely with
CIMMYT. The designations employed in the
presentation of material in this publication do not imply
the expressions of any opinion whatsoever on the part of
CIMMYT or contributory organizations concerning the
legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its
authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers
or boundaries. Learn more about CIMMYT at
www.cimmyt.org.

For decades people have comefrom miles
around to seek Elisabeth's services. The
initial charge is little or nothing, but when
her patientsfeel better, they often return
with "something to show their appreciation. "
Those gifts have helped Elisabeth and 23
family members in her compound survive
the past several years, when drought has
besieged her hilltopfarm in Kenya.

"Over the past ten years we've gotten less and
less rain. Last year the drought was very, very
bad and we had to sell almost all of our livestock
to buy food, which was going for high prices.
It was the same for most people. The price we
gotfor our oxen was very low. Later the Red
Cross arrived with famine relieffood, but by
then our money and livestock were gone. "

Elisabeth estimates that the family's
food consumption dropped about
25-30%. Her grandchildren grew
skinnier and became lethargic, but
no one starved.

At sunset, Elisabeth's family prepares a
meal ofugali (a staff maize mash), some
beans, and a bit ofpumpkin. Without a
radio for entertainment, the family will
sit and chat by lantern light into the
evening. The grandchildren will banter
with their grandmother who says she is
looking for signs that one them has
inherited her healing powers, but that
hope is tempered by what the dry hills
of Kitanga might hold for the
generations to come.

Mahindi Yanayotengeneza

Dawa Ya Kujikinga Dhini Ya

Wadudu Waharibifu

Although the terminology of insect-resistant maize and control strategies is difficult
to express in Swahili, Kenya's national language, "There is never a need to tell
farmers why we want to control stem borers," says entomologist Josephine Songa.
"They know the damage these pests wreak."

Songa, a scientist with the Kenya Agricultural
Research Institute (KARI), works with national
colleagues and CIMMYT entomologist David
Bergvinson on the Insect Resistant Maize for
Africa (IRMA) Project. Funded by the Novartis
Foundation for Sustainable Development, the
project develops improved maize that is adapted
to Kenya's main growing environments and
resists destructive stem borers.* Resistance is
being obtained from conventional sources and
also through genetic engineering to incorporate
genes from Bacillus thuringiensis, commonly called
Bt. Knowledge and technologies generated by the
Kenya-based project will be offered to other
countries in the region.

In this, the third year of the project, the
entomologists are a focal point for many
activities. Progress has been made in four key
areas, according to Bergvinson: yield assessment,
baseline studies to characterize insect
populations, management of insect resistance,
and bioassays on conventional and Bt maize.

Getting a Handle on the
Stem Borer Problem
The assessment of yield losses in Kenya's five
major maize-growing environments, on
experiment stations as well as farmers' fields,
helps scientists identify where each borer is most

Preliminary results from the on-station trials
under artificial infestation showed crop losses of
15-20%. Researchers will develop strategies for
helping different groups of farmers cope with
these losses.

"We have two extremes," Bergvinson observes.
"We need to help poor farmers in the tropical
areas, where borers are more problematic but
farmers have less access to new technologies
including income to buy them. We also need
maize varieties for the more productive, high
input areas, where farmers supply most of the
maize for the urban market and use more new
technologies."

Checking on the Insect
Community
The IRMA Project emphasizes controlling stem
borers in ways that are environmentally friendly
and sustainable. Songa, KARI extension officers,
and contact farmers are determining exactly
which insects inhabit maize fields under different
cropping systems in the respective agroecological
zones. Their studies supply data to determine the

effects, if any, of insect-resistant maize on a
host of nontarget organisms, including
beneficial insects that control the borers or
other pests, pollinators such as bees, and useful
"decomposers" such as ants and earthworms.
A reference collection is also being established
to classify the insects and organisms, to allow
rapid identification in future studies.

Collecting and classifying insects is intensive
work, says Songa, and she relies heavily on
farmers, five in each of the five targeted
regions, to maintain the plots and traps.
Extension staff and KARI technicians trained
by Songa visit the farms every week to collect
the catch. Songa herself visits the on-farm sites
to monitor the insect collection and talk with
farmers about their maize problems and
perspectives on new technologies.

Mweu (right)

wants to

eliminate the -

insects that feed

on her much-

needed maize

crop.

"In most areas," she says, "farmers can't afford
insecticides. Even if they can, many problems arise.
Applying insecticide to each plant is an incredible
amount of work: the shortage of labor is a real
problem. Timing can also cause trouble. Often farmers
apply insecticide too late to control the borers-so
they lose both time and money. That's why Bt maize
would be a tremendous benefit to these farmers."

The farm of Pauline Mweu in Masii, Machakos, is one
of Songa's favorite stops and illustrates the plight of
many farmers. Pauline sets down a five-gallon pail of
water she has retrieved from a distant river and greets
Songa in a warm but weary voice. She is eager to ask
about a problem she observed in her maize, which
Songa diagnoses as charcoal rot.

It is her ability to help farmers with a range of
problems, Songa says, that motivates them to work
with her. Sometimes Songa's assistance is as simple as
reading the instructions on a seed or chemical label.

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 5

Pauline tends her half acre virtually alone,
occasionally with help from one of her six grown
children. Unlike many farmers, Pauline still has a
bit of harvested maize left as the new maize is
coming on. She keeps it inside her house so as not
to tempt her less fortunate neighbors into stealing
it. The modest but crucial extra productivity she
ekes out of the land is earned by long hours of
weeding and care. Still, no amount of attention
has deterred the stem borers, which already infest
about a quarter of her crop. Many plants show
signs of "deadheart," which results in total loss of
the plant.

Songa and Pauline check the traps together. The
farmer had no idea that her maize plots hosted so
many different, often beneficial, insects. To date,
the IRMA Project has identified 65 insect families
in Kilifi, in the humid coastal lowlands, and 45 in
Kakamega, in the moist transitional zone in the
west. Work continues in the other three zones.

Once the trapping and collecting are done,
researchers will expose the beneficial organisms
to Bt toxins under laboratory conditions to
determine what effect, if any, the toxins may have
on them. The next stage calls for experiments
under open-quarantine conditions in which the
impact of Bt maize on nontarget organisms will
be monitored closely once again. An interesting

twist to this work is that the baseline data will be
compared with data from plots where
conventional insecticides and Bt sprays are
applied to determine their relative impacts on the
insect community.

"This thorough approach to insect ecology was
not done prior to the release of Bt maize in the
United States and elsewhere," Bergvinson
comments. "I think we've learned from those
experiences and have incorporated those lessons
into this project."

Managing Insect Resistance
A critical part of the long-term success of insect
resistant maize is to slow the development of
borers that resist the toxin and explore other
conventional lines of defense (e.g., tougher
leaves). One way to achieve this result is to ensure
that many susceptible borers mate with those that
have acquired resistance. In industrialized
countries, farmers growing Bt maize are
instructed to plant 20% of their maize area to
varieties that are susceptible to borers (50% in
maize areas in close proximity to Bt cotton). These
areas, known as refugia, provide breeding
grounds for susceptible individuals and are the
main constituent of most insect resistance
management strategies.

Bergvinson explains that Kenyan farmers may be
reluctant to plant part of their small fields to
susceptible maize. If farmers perceive that
planting refugia is uneconomic, they will quickly
abandon it. "Now we're looking for alternate
plant hosts within existing cropping systems that
we can use as refugia. The host crops must prove
susceptible to the borers, but their economic value
for farmers must not be threatened."

KARI entomologist Margaret Mulaa identifies
hosts that are preferred sites for egg laying by the
pests and also provide a high rate of larval
survivorship-this in addition to meeting the
economic criteria. By mid-2001, Mulaa was
studying approximately 30 alternate hosts in 4
environmentally diverse sites. By 2002, test plots
to assess alternate hosts should be established.
Preliminary results indicate that sorghum may be
effective in drier areas, and napier grass, a widely
grown forage crop, may work well in areas with
somewhat higher rainfall.

6 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

Bioassays: Bt Maize Meets
Kenyan Stem Borers
In early 2001, a bioassay was conducted in Kenya on
Bt maize leaves imported from CIMMYT-Mexico.
Leaves were fed to the main Kenyan borers: spotted
stem borer (Chilo partellus), African maize stalk borer
(Busseola fusca), C. orichalcocliellus, African pink borer
(Sesamia calamistis), and African sugarcane borer
(Eldana saccharina). The importation of the leaves
followed an intensive approval process by Kenyan
authorities. Leaves were used for the experiment to
ensure that no seed or living maize plants could
inadvertently move into the Kenyan environment.

The bioassay-conducted by Songa, Gethi, and
KARI technicians-showed that Bt genes crylB,
crylAb, and crylAb-lB were effective against
C. partellus and C. orichalcocliellus, while crylAb-lB
and crylAb proved lethal to S. calamistis and
E. saccharina. None of the Bt genes, however, proved
equally lethal against B. fusca, demonstrating an
effectiveness of 50-60%.

"These bioassays allow us to transfer the most
effective gene combinations into locally adapted
maize," says David Hoisington, director of
CIMMYT's Applied Biotechnology Center.
"Although we've found a prospective control for
C. partellus, the most destructive and widely
distributed stem borer in Kenya, we must identify
other genes to better target B. fusca."

A Range of Resistance
Work on conventional resistance has continued
under project coordinator Stephen Mugo.
Approximately 500 maize lines developed in Mexico
were screened in Kiboko during the first half of
2001. The best lines will be evaluated under artificial
infestation in late 2001 to further assess resistance to
C. partellus and B. fusca and their adaptation to
Kenyan conditions. By identifying a range of Bt and
conventional resistances, breeders can "pyramid" or
stack the toxins and defenses to slow the
development of resistance in the borers. "The maize
varieties that are developed will be recycled by
farmers anywhere from two to fifteen years," notes
Bergvinson, "so their resistance needs to be as
durable as we can make it. That includes
incorporating conventional resistance."

,' For more information:
David Bergvinson (d.bergvinson@cgiar.org)

Ahead, We Must Make

Ourselves Heard!"

On school holidays, Josephine Songa's five-year-old
daughter often accompanies her to work at the
Katumani Field Station. There the youngster adamantly
insists on "helping" her mother with her tasks. "She's
just like me," Josephine says proudly. "Once she gets
started on something, she puts her whole being into it
until it's completed."

While many of her equally well-trained colleagues have
been lured out of Kenya, Josephine, a KARl scientist who
works in the IRMA Project, remains committed to staying
the course. "I love my country and I treasure being near my
family," she says. She is similarly dedicated to improving
the lives of farmers. "I enjoy the intellectual challenge, but
the real satisfaction would come from seeing farmers use
our solutions and getting positive results."

Josephine's drive to help others extends especially to
women. "This is particularly important in a country such as
Kenya, where the culture dictates that women yield to
men, both in farm fields and professional fields." As
recipient of the Cambridge-based International
Biographical Centre's International Woman of the Year
Award in 2000-2001 for her services in pest management,
Josephine aims to influence other women to fulfill their
potential. "Many women in Kenya give up on their
aspirations because of our culture-be it in a meeting or
whatever," she says. "In most cases, only the men will be
talking. So if women are to get ahead, we must make
ourselves heard. We will not be handed the opportunity."

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 7

Are Researchers

Giving Up on

Africa?

Because he has worked in Africa since 1986, Hugo
De Groote's perceptions come from ground-level
certainty. "When technologies are adapted to
farmers' needs and preferences, farmers generate
more food, more production, and more income.
When farmers see good stuff, they try it."
De Groote, a CIMMYT economist, makes his
remarks in the fields of Nguno Ndunda, whose
farm is located in a dry, midaltitude region of
Kenya. It was an unplanned stop. De Groote was
on his way to see another farmer who was
enlisted for a participatory rural assessment (PRA)
when he spied deep ridges cut into the red soil of
a hillside and a bounty of fruit trees, vegetables,
and grain. Recognizing an innovative farm when
he saw one, he decided to stop.
De Groote communicates with the farmer with the
help of Daniel Mulwa, a KARI field assistant
whose native tongue is the local language, Ki
Kamba. Once Ndunda learns of their interest in
maize and farming, she invites them to tour the
farm that she works with her daughters,
granddaughters, and great-grandchildren.
Ndunda recounts that her husband, who worked
on a settler's farm in colonial days, brought back
the idea of planting maize in rows tilled by ox
drawn plows, rather than hand-hoeing small hills
for plants. This complemented the ridges-cut
during a government project of that era-by
allowing better collection of runoff and moisture
and eventually the formation of terraces. The
ground now retains enough water to support
bananas, papayas, avocados, pumpkins, and other
high-value crops in addition to pigeonpeas, beans,
and cassava. But maize production is the

"Don't believe it. You hear people say there's nothing
happening in Africa-no progress, no movement. But
actually there's a lot happening at the farm level, with
the farmers initiating it themselves."

backbone of the operation and her family's diet. In
the past, Katumani Research Station provided some
new crops (cassava) and improved maize varieties
that helped Ndunda's family meet their needs.
However, major threats to production still greatly
concern the matriarch-specifically, stem borers
and drought.
It has been by listening to farmers like Ndunda, not
by chance, that CIMMYT has placed these two
problems at the top of its research agenda for East
Africa. De Groote and KARI economists collect and
analyze the farm data needed to keep the stem
borer and drought research on track. The data will
also help measure whether new technologies are
working for farmers.

Ground-Level Information on
Stem Borers
As part of the Insect Resistant Maize in Africa
(IRMA) Project, De Groote and his KARI colleagues
organized and conducted PRAs in the five major
ecologies where maize grows in Kenya. They are
learning which maize varieties farmers prefer, what
farmers consider their major production
constraints, and which pests farmers believe are
most damaging to their maize.
The surveys involved more than 900 farmers in 43
discussion groups, as well as intensive interviews
with key informants. In addition, 5 farmers from 27
of the PRA sites agreed to plant farm plots (135
total) so researchers could assess losses from stem
borers under typical farm conditions. A clear farm
level view of the stem borer problem will guide
development of insect-resistant varieties adapted to

8 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

Kenyan conditions. It will also provide data for
impact assessment once these varieties reach the
field.

This first set of 135 on-farm studies will be
followed by five more sets.

"Our studies show that farmers consider stem
borers and storage weevils the top pest problems
for maize. Both pests ranked within the top three
constraints in all the maize ecologies," says De
Groote. (He adds that a project to address storage
weevils is in the works.) Farmers' estimates of
borer damage ranged from 25% to 60% across the
various regions, while actual losses measured
between 11% in the highlands and 46% in the
moist midaltitude areas. Unfortunately, these
figures were confounded by the severe drought
that hit Kenya at that time. Of the 135 plots
planted, only 45 produced what could be
considered a harvest. "The time and effort lost on
the research were tough," De Groote laments,
"but that's nothing compared to the effects on
farmers, whose crops were decimated."

The devastating drought and crop losses squared
with the high rank (third) that farmers accorded
to drought tolerance for selecting maize varieties.
Early maturity ranked first, perhaps because of

Maize is the backbone of the farm run

by Nguno Ndunda (left) with help

from her daughters, granddaughters,

and great-grandchildren.

farmers' desire for maize to escape drought late in
the growing season by moving more quickly
through its growth cycle.

Farmers' Local Concerns Direct
Research on Drought
Developing drought-tolerant maize varieties for
East Africa-and promoting their use in the field
is the focus of another CIMMYT project utilizing
De Groote and KARI economists, the Africa Maize
Stress (AMS) Project. More than 2,000 experimental
cultivars have been tested by the project under
drought and low nitrogen conditions, and the most
promising were bred with locally adapted maize
cultivars. Although several varieties show great
potential, getting farmers, particularly in drier
areas, to adopt the improved maize may be
difficult, based on their past reluctance to take on
new varieties. Many believe that the failure to

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 9

The Life of an
Itinerant Researcher
"I don't think I've had a boring day in the 20 years
since I left my home country, Belgium," reflects
CIMMYT economist Hugo De Groote. "I'm still
enjoying it, still hoping to make my small
contribution to the needy in the developing world,
and still finding the work incredibly interesting."

It's a long journey from constructing latrines and
wells in a small village in northeastern Thailand to
conducting surveys with maize farmers in the hills of
Kenya. Stops along the way have included Togo, the
University of Wisconsin, Mali, and Benin-working
on everything from new crop varieties to water
hyacinth invasions and locust plagues.

The life of an itinerant researcher has its
downside, Hugo concedes. A price is paid in terms
of maintaining close relationships with family and
friends. The work can be tough physically.
Residing and working among people living with
malnutrition, high crime, tropical diseases, AIDS,
and-especially-grinding poverty can also take
an emotional toll. Observing the chasm between
the haves and the have-nots of the world, with an
unflinching eye, is not for everyone.

For Hugo, everything balances out when he goes
to the field and finds farmers eager to learn and
try something new. "Many times, when we go to
a new village, the farmers are so anxious to help
with testing a new variety or technology," he says.
"If it's successful, you know you've helped bring
something positive to some very poor people."

deliver improved varieties to the field can be
attributed to the communication gap between
breeders and farmers.

To bridge this gap, De Groote and his colleagues in
the project selected one or more villages near the
KARI experiment stations where AMS research was
done. Group sessions were convened in those villages
to hear about farmers' preferences and production
problems and gather information on farming systems,
the cropping season, availability of extension, and
local market conditions. At the conclusion of the
meetings, farmers were asked if they would be
interested in evaluating the varieties being tested at
the nearby station.

"At all four sites," says De Groote, "farmers were
enthusiastic about evaluating the varieties. In fact,
they wanted to evaluate them twice: once during the
vegetative stage and again at harvest. Some of the
breeders have really caught on to this. In one
instance, a group of farmers was 'hijacked'
figuratively speaking-from our AMS plots when a
KARI breeder absolutely had to get their evaluations
of some varieties provided by CIMMYT-Zimbabwe
that he was working on. It's great to see that give
and-take in action."

The farmers judged 13 of 52 varieties to be
significantly superior to the most popular local
variety. Breeders will narrow these 13 selections
down to 8 or 10, based on other performance factors,
and provide them to farmers for testing. This
approach also lends itself to the mother/baby trial
system, which has worked successfully in Zimbabwe*
and is being introduced into Kenya.

"Our participatory methodology still needs some
work," De Groote observes, "but its outline is
emerging. The farmers are eager to participate in
selecting new varieties, and this shows great promise
for increasing collaboration between farmers,
breeders, and social scientists. By learning about
farmers' preferences at an early stage of the research,
and talking to farmers as they grow and evaluate
their preferred experimental cultivars on their own
farms, we should be able to help adoption advance
more successfully than in the past."

Holding the line against invading rust
pathogens is a multinational network which,
like the wind, knows no borders: the Global
Rust Monitoring Nursery (GRMN). The
GRMN, which is in its start-up phase, girds the
earth from Africa, the Middle East, Central
Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, and China all the
way to Mexico, CIMMYT's host country. It was
created to keep a vigilant eye on the rusts,
which constantly develop hardier strains that
can defeat the built-in genetic protection of
wheat varieties.
"The network operates thanks to the
cooperation of more than thirty national
agricultural research systems, our partners in
the developing world," explains Ravi Singh,
geneticist/pathologist in charge of rust research
at CIMMYT.
The cooperation of these nations hinges upon
CIMMYT's involvement, considered by many
to be the sine qua non of collaboration. This trust
is due in part to CIMMYT's long history of
helping nations equally and politically, as well
as to the good relations between CIMMYT and
colleagues in developing countries. Even
countries in open conflict with each other
cooperate willingly if CIMMYT is involved.

The wind is an innocent carrier of pathogens, with no
regard for national borders. One group of pathogens-
fungi that cause rust diseases-can ride the wind for
thousands of kilometers until the rain scrubs them out
of the air. If they fall on a wheat field, they may start
epidemics of stem, leaf, or stripe rust, the three
deadliest wheat diseases. Rust epidemics can destroy
healthy wheat in a few weeks.

An Old Enemy, Constantly
Renewed
The rusts are probably as old as wheat itself. As
far back as the 4th century BC, Aristotle mentions
the devastation wrought by rust epidemics. Until
fairly recent times, when control measures were
developed, rusts regularly provoked ruinous
losses for farmers all over the world.
Incorporating genetic resistance into wheat
varieties has proved to be the most effective, low
cost, and environmentally friendly means of
keeping the rusts in check.
Today most wheat varieties can resist one or
several rusts, but that is not always enough to
guarantee their survival. Rust fungi have their
own defenses. When confronted by genetic
resistance, they evolve into stronger forms, or
"races," to overcome it. This, plus their ability to
spread on the wind, leaves countries powerless to
keep new forms of rust from entering their
territories. As an example of how efficiently rusts
spread, experts believe that stem rust fungi were
blown or otherwise transported 8,000 kilometers
from East Africa to Australia at least three times
in the past century.
Another instance of rust advance is the
dissemination of a virulent race of stripe rust that

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 1 1

Blowi

Blowing in the wind: movement of a virulent strain of stripe rust.

arose in East Africa in 1986 and then migrated to
North Africa, crossing West Asia and South Asia to
reach Southeast Asia around 1998 (see map). On
the way, the new race caused major epidemics and
severe production losses in Ethiopia, Turkey, Iran,
Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The multi million
dollar losses could have been reduced or avoided
through concerted monitoring and control
efforts-if governments had cooperated.

Pathologists without Borders
The opportunity to bring nations together to
combat the rusts arose after the 1997 External
Program and Management Review at CIMMYT.
Banking on CIMMYT's reputation as an honest
broker, the panel strongly recommended (with
endorsement of the CGIAR's Technical
Advisory Committee) that the CIMMYT Wheat
Program monitor the evolution of the three
rusts in the developing world. In response, the
Program promoted the establishment of rust
monitoring nurseries in regions affected by the
rusts (see table).

CIMMYT researchers based in Africa, Asia, and
Latin America were key to implementing the
GRMN with national research organizations. In
the region spanning West Asia, North Africa, and
Central Asia, national researchers receive the
valuable cooperation of Amor Yahyaoui, senior

* In collaboration with ICARDA, under
the CIMMYT-ICARDA Dryland Wheat
Program for WANA.

cereal pathologist at the International Center for
Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA),
a CGIAR center and our partner in this effort.

Nurseries: An Early-Warning
Mechanism
A "nursery" may not sound like a powerful means
of fighting an epidemic, but these carefully chosen
assemblies of seed help pathologists screen for
potentially dangerous strains of rust pathogens.

CIMMYT prepares regional nurseries (except those
for West Asia, North Africa, and Central Asia,
assembled by ICARDA under the CIMMYT
ICARDA Dryland Wheat Program for WANA) by
gathering together different kinds of wheat seed:
seed of varieties with well-known resistance to
different rust pathogens, internationally important
varieties, and the most popular wheats in each
participating country. This seed is shipped to
GRMN partners, who sow it at carefully chosen
sites within each region, including a few disease
"hot spots." During the crop cycle, the researchers
evaluate how severely each type of wheat is
affected by rust at each site. They take samples of
rusted plants and test them to determine which rust
has caused the damage. Finally, they send CIMMYT
information on which wheats may succumb to
which rust races. This year they are returning data
for the first time.

1 2 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

The GRMN researchers will report new rust
races as soon as they appear and, through
CIMMYT, will help alert unaffected
countries to the potential danger of
epidemics traveling on the wind. CIMMYT
shares this important information with
scientists and decision makers in each
country, who will use it to decide whether
susceptible wheats should be replaced with
new resistant varieties.

Working for the Resistance
There are two types of genetic resistance to
rust: one is based on a single major gene (or
a combination of major genes) protecting
wheat against a specific rust race; the other
is the result of the combined effects of
several minor genes. Because the rusts are
unlikely to develop new races that can
overcome the effects of many minor genes at
the same time, minor gene resistance is more
durable. Durable, minor gene resistance is
present in newer CIMMYT wheats, which
are available to all countries that need them.

"Many wheats in developing countries are
old varieties that lack durable rust
resistance," says Julio Huerta-Espino,
CIMMYT research affiliate in Mexico. "Until
they have durable resistance, we have to
monitor the rust fungi to avoid yield losses."
Early detection of new virulent strains gives
countries at risk enough time to replace
susceptible wheats with resistant ones and
avoid large-scale epidemics. Persuading
farmers to switch to resistant wheats is the
ultimate goal of the GRMN.

Eventually, research networks in each region
of the developing world will take over
operation of the GRMN. Though CIMMYT's
participation will gradually diminish, the
Center will continue to encourage the
cooperation that allows this highly effective
early-warning system to exist.

"When people visit our genebank, I try to show them that "
it's more than a collection of frozen seed," says Bent
Skovmand, head of CIMMYT's Wheat Germplasm Bank. "I
try to show them that this seed is their future. It could
literally save their country's wheat crop."

In 2001, CIMMYT's genebank provided insurance for
farmers and consumers yet again, after two new rust races
emerged. The first, identified in April, was a leaf rust that
attacked the most widely grown durum wheat variety in
Sonora, northwestern Mexico. Sonoran farmers have
planted this variety, called Altar-84, on a wide area since its
release in 1984. When farmers grow a single variety across
a large area for a long time, the variety is more likely to
become vulnerable to disease. The second new race, a stripe rust,
attacked triticale varieties being tested for release in Ecuador and
Mexico in the summer of 2001. Triticale, a grain developed from wheat
and rye, is often untouched by diseases that attack wheat, but the new
stripe rust preyed exclusively on triticale.

How could CIMMYT's breeders limit the effects of these new rust races?
Researchers immediately evaluated advanced lines of durum wheat (the
experimental durums that are closest to being finished and tested for
release). Fortunately a number of lines proved resistant, but breeders
wanted to fortify that resistance. About 4,500 accessions of older durum
breeding lines and landraces from the genebank were planted for
evaluation in the summer of 2001. (Landraces, selected by farmers from
primitive wheats over centuries, often contain unique genetic traits.)
Almost 1,500 accessions displayed minor gene or major gene resistance
to the new leaf rust race. These accessions, especially those with minor
gene (long-lasting) resistance, are a valuable breeding resource.

Earlier in 2001, before anyone knew about the new stripe rust race,
triticale researchers approached Skovmand about increasing triticale's
genetic variability. In other words, they wanted to identify genebank
accessions with valuable characteristics, including disease resistance, to
breed into advanced triticale lines. Genebank and triticale staff planted
about 1,300 primary triticales to evaluate. (Primary triticales are the
original triticales derived directly from crosses between durum or bread
wheat and rye. These triticales are an underutilized resource in breeding
programs because, like wheat landraces, they are time-consuming to
use.) The 1,300 accessions were inoculated with the newly identified
stripe rust race. More than 300 proved resistant. A number of advanced
triticale lines were also resistant, but the 300 genebank accessions
provide additional, more genetically diverse sources of resistance.

These experiences underscore the importance of collecting and
conserving diverse wheats and triticales as insurance against
unforeseen disaster. They also show how rapidly CIMMYT mobilizes
these resources to help its partners prevent epidemics. In a matter of
months, the genebank provided breeders with novel information on
bank accessions to respond to these crisis situations. "When people ask
why we need funding to maintain this collection," says Skovmand, "the
message I try to convey is this: If this seed disappears, so could your
food. So could you."

.-p For more information:
S.Bent Skovmand (b.skovmand@cgiar.org)

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 1 3

The Almanac

Characterization Tool:

Click on

"Accessible G

for Africa"

Users of the ACT, or Almanac Characteriz
Tool, include agricultural researchers fron
public sector, international research center
in eastern and southern Africa, private set
companies, and even a religious organizal
helping Malawian villagers access preciot
water. Initially supported by Texas A&M
University and CIMMYT, the software
developers have moved to the private sec
collaboration with CIMMYT continues.

Out of the Lab, into Users'
Laptops
The ACT was created in the late 1990s by
Blackland Research and Extension Center
Texas A&M University System, with help
GIS and modeling lab of CIMMYT's Natu
Resources Group (NRG) and funding fror
Agency for International Development (U
"The idea was to take GIS out of specializ
and put it into the hands of the researcher
extension workers, and other people servi
farmers directly in developing countries,"
David Hodson, a GIS specialist at CIMM)'
has helped test, evaluate, and promote the
Since the creation of the ACT, Hodson anc
colleagues from CIMMYT and Texas A&N
traveled the globe, distributing CD-ROM
containing the application and offering tr

A geographic information system (GIS) for agriculture is
being used in myriad ways throughout the developing
world-especially Africa-to benefit the rural poor.

At a workshop in Malawi, the ACT's potential for
addressing serious water shortages in
northwestern Malawi quickly dawned on
participant Jim McGill. McGill coordinates the
Protected Water Programmes in the Development
Department, Synod of Livingstonia, Church of
Central Africa (part of the Presbyterian Church's
Worldwide Ministries Division). McGill and his
group are now using the ACT for their protected
water programs-which mainly cover water for
drinking and domestic use-in Malawi.
"We are looking at an area where the geography
and geology are not conducive to hand-dug
wells, and boreholes sometimes produce salty
water," he explains. "We'll use the ACT to map
the areas where hand-dug wells dry up before
the rains come and where water from deeper
boreholes is salty. Suggestions have also been
made to provide piped water. The ACT helps us
to locate promising water sources, to compare
the topography between source and demand,
and to estimate costs. Where piped water is
feasible, we'll use the ACT to help produce a
proposal for donors."

1 4 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

Angola

Malawi

Zambia

GIS' Power Opens Eyes
A GIS can pull together information of a
hundred types-topography, weather,
land use, soil type, research sites, and
actual data from experiments conducted
at those sites, to name a few examples.
Prior to the ACT, running a GIS required
high-powered software and hardware,
often beyond the reach of users in
developing countries.

For researchers who have never
worked with a GIS, the ACT is an eye
opener, according to Hodson: "In
addition to working with the installed
maps and data, users can upload their
own data, manipulate and combine
datasets, and create customized,
exportable maps, tables, and figures, to
mention a few features."

Early in 2001, the ACT team surveyed
users to document the product's varied
applications, as well as identify possible
shortcomings of tools or data. Though not
exhaustive, the compilation revealed an
extremely wide range of users, including
researchers from CGIAR centers,* private
seed companies, and non-governmental
organizations. "Applications are varied,
but they address two broad questions all
agricultural researchers must answer,"
Hodson says. "First, how do you know
you're working in the right place for the
right farmers? Second, how can you share
a useful practice or product developed at
one site with farmers at many other,
similar locations?"

For Geoff Hildebrand at the Rattray
Arnold Research Station, Seed Co Ltd.,
Zimbabwe, the answers are central to
developing and marketing new
groundnut varieties. "Groundnut is an
important food crop in southern Africa.
Much is grown under marginal climatic
conditions," he says. "A major constraint
is the short rainy season. Until recently,
the only cultivars available matured in
105-130 days. But the average rainy

* CIMMYT, as well as the International Centre for Research in
Agroforestry (ICRAF), the International Center for Research
in the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), and the International
Livestock Research Institute (ILRI).

Zimbabwe

Botswana

Namibia

Swaziland

South Africa

ACT results: Bright blue areas indicate locations in southern Africa where the groundnut
cultivar Nyanda is recommended to help farmers cope with the short rainy season.

season in some parts seldom exceeds
80-90 days, resulting in reduced yields,
difficult harvesting, and increased risk
of aflatoxin contamination.
Development of shorter-duration
cultivars is critical." Hildebrand and
his colleagues used the ACT to define
short rainy season areas, conduct
climate similarity studies for a key
testing site, and produce
recommendation maps for the use of
Nyanda, a new Seed Co short-season
groundnut cultivar (see figure).

Other uses of the ACT have included:

* development, dissemination, and
impact assessment of agroforestry
technologies in five African
countries;

* detailed characterization of wheat
production areas in Ethiopia;

* designing sampling strategies for
agricultural surveys in Mexico;

* grouping mid-hill maize
production regions in Nepal into
research domains based on climate;

* increasing the cost-effectiveness of
farmer participatory verification
trials in several countries of
southern Africa; and

* choosing locations for testing maize
hybrids and targeting them to
production environments in
Zimbabwe.

Looking Ahead
The ACT software is fast approaching
the full set of geographic tools
envisaged by its designers, according
to Jeff White, head of CIMMYT's GIS
and modeling lab. "While we continue
to extend the geographic coverage of
the ACTs-more countries and more
regions within countries-our current
goal is to increase usage. We need to
look hard at post-workshop adoption
and make sure people get the most
out of the ACTs."

Concurrently, the collaboration with
the ACT developers has entered a new
phase with the "spin-off" of the ACT
from Texas A&M to Mud Springs
Geographers, Inc. John Corbett, the
company's president (and the
agricultural geographer who first
brought GIS to CIMMYT), emphasizes
that Mud Springs is committed to
assisting CIMMYT and its partners in
the developing world. Experience
shows that such collaboration
strengthens Mud Springs' data,
software, and service products for
developed country markets, as well as
providing a motivating and
enlightening experience for its
employees.

r .P For more information:
S Jeff White (j.white@cgiar.org)

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 1 5

The complete sequencing of the human genome caught the imagination of
the scientific community as well as the public at large. The implications are
enormous: a world in which many of our most dreaded diseases can be
detected and perhaps ameliorated in life's earliest stages; greater
knowledge of how our genes interact with one another and the environment
to shape our beings; and a fresh appreciation for how closely we are related
to other organisms that inhabit the earth. Recent developments in plant
genomics are equally revolutionary.

Functional plant genomics will provide a
complete picture of the roles and functions of
plant genes of interest and how they interact with
one another and the environment to produce an
individual plant type. Comparative genomics will
make it possible to apply knowledge about the
genome of one species to another species. These
areas of study hold the key to creating crops with
built-in resistance to major diseases and insect
pests, as well as tolerance for the scourges of
drought, high soil acidity, and low nitrogen. In
this fast-changing research arena, CIMMYT's
Applied Biotechnology Center (ABC) has been
quick to lay the groundwork for applying
genomic approaches to improve farm
productivity in developing countries.

Most recently, in April 2001, the ABC hosted a
strategic planning workshop on the Cereal
Genomics Initiative, a major collaboration
proposed by CGIAR centers and US Land Grant
universities aimed at harnessing crop genomics
for the betterment of developing world
agriculture. Underwritten by the Rockefeller
Foundation, the workshop brought together
about 50 experts in cereal genomics and
researchers with first-hand experience in
developing world agriculture.

"CIMMYT was selected to host the planning
workshop because it is a recognized center of
excellence for cereal improvement for developing
countries," says Robert Zeigler, one of the

workshop organizers and director of the Plant
Biotechnology Center at Kansas State University
(in addition to his role as head of the Department
of Plant Pathology). "To embark on a bold
venture like this requires credibility, and there is
no one with greater credibility than CIMMYT,
with its years of adapting biotechnology to cereal
improvement and long track record of partnering
with advanced research institutions."

From Common Origins,
Uncommon Opportunities
Cereals, Zeigler explains, offer a unique
opportunity among plants to produce rapid
benefits from molecular research, because they all
belong to the family of grasses and share a
common origin. An understanding of how genes
for a desirable trait, such as drought tolerance,
work in one species can help breeders improve
their function in other species. Similarity among
cereal species also implies that when genes are
moved from one cereal species into another, they
will tend to work well and in the same way, with
minimal genetic engineering. For instance,
knowledge about the genetics of rice (which is
almost completely sequenced) can be applied to
maize and wheat, thereby accelerating research
and genetic engineering.

Four principal areas of work and associated
technologies were identified by workshop
participants: alleviating abiotic stresses,

16 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

alleviating biotic stresses, adding value to
cereals, and improving yield potential,
specifically by modifying photosynthesis. The
group also identified approaches to reach
these goals, including a comprehensive
genomics-based evaluation and
characterization of the genetic resources
available for improving cereals; coordinated
development of molecular tools based on
these resources; mechanisms to assure free
and cost-effective access to tools; freely
available data storage, manipulation, and
analysis tools; and databases specifically
designed for this program.

The scientists' diverse backgrounds
contributed to a productive research planning
environment, says ABC director David
Hoisington. A ten-year initiative was
proposed to capture the technological
strengths of the US scientific community,
where nearly US$ 80 million have been
invested in this area over the past decade, and
wed them to the genetic resources,
knowledge, and international scope of the
CGIAR centers to solve high-priority
problems affecting basic food crops.

The first five years of the proposed research
would lay the foundation for large-scale
manipulation of the cereal genome. Scientists
would generate a knowledge base to better
understand the cereal genome and create
tools to make the most of existing diversity.
Relatively straightforward traits would be
manipulated, and novel resistance to formerly
invulnerable diseases and pests and tolerance
to salinity would be moved into species
requiring these traits. Towards the end of this
first phase, commercial cultivars would be
nearly ready for release. In the second phase,
research partners would apply knowledge
gained in the first phase to particularly
complex traits such as tolerance to drought
and extreme temperatures, cereal chemistry
and nutritional quality, and photosynthesis.
Both phases of the research would include
major training programs, as scientists from
national agricultural research systems
participate as students and postdoctoral
fellows at CGIAR centers and US universities.

"Who can argue with applying the

most powerful tools in plant biology

to some of the most intractable

problems facing humanity today?"

'\. N
^

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 1 7

Hoisington, Zeigler, and workshop co-organizer
Jeff Bennetzen, the H. Edwin Umbarger Professor
of Genetics, Department of Biological Sciences at
Purdue University, met with US officials and
legislators in July to pursue funding for the
initiative, which has received strong support from
the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA),
the American Farm Bureau Association, and the
American Society of Plant Physiologists.
Although it might seem unusual that these
groups would support research aimed primarily
at developing world farmers, NCGA
representative Gary Davis, speaking on behalf of
the initiative to a US House of Representatives
subcommittee, declared, "When scientists solve
these problems in poor countries, they not only
help people feed themselves and move up from
poverty, they help ensure safe harvests across our
own country."

Zeigler meanwhile believes that the initiative will
be picked up in some form by an interested party.
"I am an incurable optimist," he says, "especially
when it comes to such an obviously good idea.
Who can argue with applying the most powerful
tools in plant biology to some of the most
intractable problems facing humanity today?"

Partnerships to Build on
Knowledge
While Hoisington would welcome the
opportunity to move ahead with the Cereal Crop
Genome Initiative, he is pleased with progress
CIMMYT has made on other genomics activities
and partnerships. Much of this work focuses on
the development of drought tolerance for maize
and other cereals. The Rockefeller Foundation has
funded an initial two-year project aimed at better
understanding the response of maize to drought

and the development of molecular approaches
that complement conventional breeding for
drought tolerance in cereals. The ABC also works
with the International Rice Research Institute
(IRRI) to discover key drought tolerance genes
and mechanisms. CIMMYT has made progress on
optimizing RNA extraction protocols and
quantifying gene expression in segregating
germplasm-two technical building blocks for
functional genomics.

Most recently, CIMMYT and Pioneer Hi-Bred
initiated a two-year collaboration aimed at
utilizing functional genomics, specifically
genomics tools called microarrays, to identify
genes and pathways associated with drought
tolerance, and to learn more about their
interactions. This is a straightforward exchange,
says CIMMYT molecular geneticist Jean-Marcel
Ribaut. "They provide what they've learned
about genes involved in stress tolerance, as well
as the microarray technology, and we provide
well-characterized germplasm and considerable
field and lab work. Both sides benefit, and we are
free to use and distribute the information we
obtain to our clients. Productive arrangements
like this one clearly show that we can work with
the private sector without compromising our
freedom to operate. It's exciting."

Finally, an agreement has been established with
the project team developing the International
Maize Database (MaizeDB) at the University of
Missouri, for CIMMYT to serve as its first mirror
site, with the intention of exploring avenues for
making the information available to developing
country partners.

SFor more information:
David Hoisington (d.hoisington@cgiar.org)

18 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

II
L

1 a t i n a m e r i c a

.: ... ... ii..
.. ...,
.. ... ...
-S ..,
k~ T JIB
t^ /IAs^

n a m e r i

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4

S-4%i

7 vira Murguia Zambrano (right) drinks

from a nearly dry river after a hot

morning's work planting maize with herfather

(described in the following story). She is a

27-year-old widow who lives in Ayuquililla,

southern Mexico. With herfour children,

Elvira shares a modest homestead with her

parents, several younger siblings, and their

children. The entire family has only two

hectares of land on which they grow maize

immediate needs like children's school lunches

(one piece offruit each). A brother in the USA

and sister in Mexico City sometimes send

money. Like countless women in remote, rural

areas ofMexico and CentralAmerica, Murgufa

. .. ':,to help run and resource a household

dominated by children and the elderly.
dominated by children and the elderly.

The Mexican Mixteca:

n Agriculture's

"Take this message to people: We're barely living. There's no work here.
Round-trip bus fare to Huajuapan [a medium-size city some 30
kilometers away] is 34 pesos, and if we make 50 pesos for a day's
labor, that hardly leaves money to buy a glass of water. We're
trapped!" Farmer Jose Murguia Rios smiles and speaks softly, but keeps
his grip on his listener's arm as if to impress the urgency of his plea.

- 1,1! 4 1 ., and his family live in the village of
Ayuquililla, part of the mountainous, semi-arid
Mixteca region of southeastern Mexico. Cactus,
low shubs, goats, and rocks share the sun-baked
landscape with some 1.5 million humans, nearly half
of whom have indigenous ancestry and a quarterof
whom cannot read or write. Goat herdingis a major
pursuit, supplemented by marginal, rainfed
production of maize and beans, some garden crops,
and even wheat. The thin, unfertile soils receive 300
700 millimeters of poorly distributed rain each year.
The less dependable rains, together with poor soil
management and unfavorable policies, have nearly
shut down the area's low-input farming systems.

Harvesting Nothing
Fully half the region's residents have fled to jobs in
larger cities or the United States. They leave behind
ghost towns peopled largely by the very young or
very old, with a huge demographic hole where the
economically productive adult population ought to
be. Families are separated, and many stay-behinds
depend on support from the outside. Those who
lack external support must seek what seasonal
workthey can of f farm, though the depressed local
economy offers little. Nearly everyone weaves hats
tobuy maize (one hat fetches 1.7 kilograms of
maize) when grain stores run out. This year
reserves vanished quickly. The rains failed, so
farmers in manyvillages harvested nothing.

II .. .,. s who choose to stay have a variety
of reasons," says Julio C6sar Velasquez, a
CIMMYT research affiliate who knows the
region's inhabitants well. "There are strong
ties-to the land and traditions; to family,
especially their parents; and to country living.
Some people have tried the cities but had
problems. The point is, these people should
have the right to choose. Right now, they're
being forced off their land."
Under the Mixteca Farmer Experimentation
Project, funded by the Conrad N. Hilton
Foundation and the Ford Foundation over
1998-2001, Velasquez has tried to provide
more choices to Mixteca inhabitants. Working
directly with farmers in one of the Mixteca's
drier zones, he and an associate helped them
to identify, test, and share new practices such
as composting, drought tolerant maize
varieties, grain legumes, alternative crops,
drip irrigation, and live barriers that keep soil
in place on the steep hillsides but also produce
food. Farmers have learned to conduct
experiments, analyze findings, and present
results at annual gatherings of participating
villages. "There's a critical mass of
enthusiastic farmer-experimenters," says
Velasquez. "Most importantly, isolated groups
are communicating, sharing results, and
planning concerted action to better their lot."

22 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

Trapped

Tailspin

Experiments in Survival
Farmer Luciano Soriano Castro, of Lunatitlan
Village, spoke of his own enthusiasm over the
project's activities: "Julio Cesar came to our town,
explained his intentions to the local authorities,
and then called an assembly. Several of us met
with him afterwards. I was most interested in
composting." After a year's experimentation,
some farmers devised their own liquid compost
that measurably improved yields.

When Velasquez brought a group of Mixteca
farmers to CIMMYT headquarters, one visitor
Zacarias Munoz Martinez of Zapoquila Village, a
high-altitude location-noted a plot of triticale
and later requested seed of "that odd wheat."
When he tested it, the results were good and
impressed his peers. "What interested us was that
triticale yielded more than our wheat," he says.
"We'll use it to make tortillas." Munoz and some
other farmers had tested the grain for this
purpose and found ii \.. II. ~1i

A relatively young farmer, Munoz is an oddity in
a village peopled by women and old men. His
farm is among the few in the village with access
tn a natural spring, which gives him a rare
ad- i ,I 1y' To make the most of their limited
water resources, several other farmers in
Zapoquila have installed simple drip irrigation
systems for growing garden vegetables-a plus
for household nutrition-with help from
Velasquez.

In Ayuquililla, Productoras de Amaranto, an
association of women farmers, is experimenting
with growing morel mushrooms, an occupation
they learned from a specialist invited by a local
NGO.* Velasquez provided technical support
andencouragement. "Right now we're in the
investment and learning stage, but we'll
eventually share any profit we make,"
says Marisol Pena Huerta, the association's
president. The group also grows amaranth, a
nutritious pre-Colombian crop, and prickly pear
cactus, whose leaves are used in savory Mexican
dishes and whose fruit can be sold locally. "We've
also seen promising results with a couple of grain
legumes," says Velasquez.

Achieving material gains is only part of what
Velasquez aims to accomplish. He is almost as
concerned with bolstering farmers' self esteem
and community spirit. "If I can get people
communicating with each other, get them
motivated and organized, then I've achieved
something valuable," he says.

*r JTTr" r3 .4"r -
Farmer Jose Murguia Rios: "We're barely living."

"I'd like to commend Julio Cesar and the Hilton
and Ford Foundations for supporting farmers
who are largely forgotten by the rest of the
world," comments Larry Harrington, director of
CIMMYT's Natural Resources Group and project
supervisor. "We're actively seeking funds to
continue this work."

During the 1980s, faced with an increasingly
competitive environment as a result of
globalization and trade liberalization, Central
American governments began transforming
their agricultural sectors to increase export
earnings and improve food security.
They implemented a policy to move fDm
producing basic grains to cash or commercial
export crops such as palm oil, coffee, and
melons. Basic grains would be purchased
frominternational markets.

"This policy hinged on arguments that the
production of basic grains like white maize
wasnot competitive and that incr easing
productivity in this area would not ease
poverty," says Gustavo Sain, CIMMYT regional
economist for Central America. "While this
policy has made some sectors competitive, it
benefited only a few people. As a result, rural
poverty has remained unchanged or, in some
countries, has increased."

Sain coordinates a regional project that is
evaluating whether white maize production
inCentral America can be more competitive
than policy makers assumed. He works with a
network of scientists from national agricultural
research systems in Costa Rica, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama,
who identify and characterize competitive
maize areas in each country. Current and
futuretechnologies that can str engthen
competitiveness are also documented. The
project is funded by CIMMYT, the Regional
Fund for Agricultural Technologies
(FONTAGRO), and the Swiss Agency for
Development and Cooperation (SDC).

Some Central American farmers thrived on policies that
encouraged them to switch from growing food crops to raising
export crops. Many more were driven deeper into poverty. Is it
too late to help the poorest farmers who remain on the land?

In many countries in Central America,
agricultural policy has had a particularly adverse
impact on grain production and smallholder
farmers. Talk of the "disappearance" of maize
production areas and smallholder farmers is
common. In Costa Rica, for example, maize
production has decreased from 64,000 hectares
tol8,000 hectar es. "Maize is grown in areas
withpoor soil. The rich soil ar eas belong to
morecompetitive pr oducts like coffee and palm
oil," explains Rocio Oviedo Navas, national
maize coordinator for Costa Rica's Ministry of
Agriculture. "Many farmers prefer to grow maize,
but they lost their subsidies and had to switch
tothe new cr ops. We are slowly seeing the
disappearance of the smallholder maize farmer."

A recent study conducted by Hermel Lopez,
director of Planning and Socioeconomics at the
Institute de Investigacion Agropecuaria de
Panama (IDIAP), indicated that production of
basic grains-rice, maize, and beans-fell by 30
40% among smallholder farmers, who make up
the majority of agricultural producers in Panama.

"In rice we had around 15,000 farmers, now we
have 1,000. Only the big farms have survived.
Thescenario is very much the same for maize-a
lot of farmers have disappeared in a very short
period," he says. "Agriculture is one of the
sectors hardest hit by this adjustment policy. If
you look at the figures, agriculture used to be
ll%of GNP; now it is only 5.8%. This has had a
social impact that has not been looked into in its
full dimension. We are still dealing with it in
terms ofmigration of the r ural population and
extremepoverty."

24 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

Increasing poverty and high rates of
malnutrition in nral areas are some of the
consequences. A recent census indicated that
60% of farmers ar poor, 40% cannot meet
theirbasic needs, and malnutrition rates r each
40%inr ural areas. Toaddr ess the problem of
malnutrition, IDIAP recently began a poverty
reliefpr ogram for poor farmers.

In Panama, farmers receive an incentive of
US$ 150 for each hectae they convert to
export cnps. The government also subsidizes
60%of the cost of irrigation to pr oduce the crop.
Despite these incentives, problems remain, even
for larger commercial maize producers like Hugo
Agurto, president of the Maize and Sorghum
Association in Los Santos, Panama. Maize
production is the primary activity in Los Santos,
where farm sizes range from 20 to 200 hectares.

"In 1996, we had 17,000 hectares of maize and
95pr oducers, and 3,500 hectares of sorghum with
80 producers. Now sorghum has disappeared and
we have 10,000 hectares under maize with 53
producers," Agurto says. He explains that farmers
were edged out by the lack of investment capital
and were hesitant to face the risks associated with
the new crops. "We need irrigation to grow these
crops, and even though the government subsidizes
the cost of irrigation, they pay the 60% only after
the farmer has invested. In March I sent a five-ton
container of melons to the US and Europe, and we
still haven't received payment. We farmers don't
have cash, we buy many things on credit, and not
having this payment makes life difficult for us."

Agurto converted a portion of his land to the new
crops, but he prefers to keep growing maize.
"Iknow the technology, I have a credit obligation
on my land, all the equipment I have bought over
the years is for maize, and I have greater food
security during the dry season-I have the maize
and the cattle. Also, with these new products, the
farmers in Honduras, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and
Panama are all growing the same thing and
competing for the same market."

Although the government in Nicaragua
encourages farmers to diversify into commercial
export crops, the production of white maize, a
staple, remains a national priority. Maize is
produced mainly by small and medium-scale

farmers using local varieties and traditional
technology. "The farmers here still grow maize,
but they also grow a greater variety of products,
"sais Lesbia Rizzo, a socioeconomist at the
Institute Nicaragiense de Tecnologia
Agropecuaria (INTA). "What we've done is to
identify maize areas and look at factors that can
make production more competitive. We'll
analyze the information we collect and bring it
tothe policy level so they can take the right
decision to help these farmers."

SI :

The information gathered by Sain and his
colleagues will be used to investigate
whetherwhite maize pr oduction can be socially
beneficial and competitive, both nationally and
internationally, and to promote policies that
support maize competitiveness. Sain believes
that white maize production can be competitive.
He cites the example of DEMASA, one of the
main producers of corn flour and tortilla in
Central America, which opened its offices in
Costa Rica several years ago. "When DEMASA
came into Costa Rica, they started buying maize
and giving seed and technology tofarmers, and
the maize area started growing again. If there is
demand for the product-even in CostaRica,
which is not traditionally a maize-producing
country-then white maize production will
goup," he says.

Among the ideas that Sain hopes to promote is
the production of maize-derived products for
consumers. "We want to show the need to be
competitive not only in producing maize but in
consumer products. We also want to promote
policies that support maize competitiveness and
allow farmers to capture a share of the value of
the final product," Sain says. "This could be a
win-win situation. Youar e building up your
competitive advantage with a crop produced by
the poorest groupin the r ural sector, you are
increasing your competitiveness, and you are
avoiding poverty. This modernization program
has not reduced poverty. Our hope is based on
the importance that governments are giving
nowto helping the poor."

1J For more information:
hi, i ',. Gustavo Sain (g.sain@cgiar.org)

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 25

Hybrids Respond

in Tough

Environments

"These results and several studies elsewhere in
the developing world seem to refute the concern
that the superior yield potential of modern
hybrids is expressed only when they receive
adequate fertilization and other inputs," says
Jerome Fournier, a CIMMYT research associate
who conducted the work in fulfillment of his
PhD requirements. "In fact, at the site where
maize yields tend to be lowest, hybrid HB-83
yielded 65% more than the local varieties."
The higher grain yields of the hybrid resulted
from several traits, including a greater number of
grains per plant, less lodging, and a higher ratio
of grain to above-ground vegetation. "HB-83
yielded better than the local varieties at high-
yielding sites and seemed better adapted in low-

New evidence from the remote Polochic watershed of
Guatemala-a low-input farming area similar to many
marginal maize production zones in Central America
and southeastern Mexico-contradicts the notion that
farmers' local maize varieties perform better than
scientifically improved hybrids in such circumstances.
In experiments at 75 sites during 1997-98 and under
three levels of fertilization, from none (farmers'
normal practice) to high, the white-grained hybrid HB-
83 outyielded local, non-hybrid varieties by an
average of more than 20%.

yielding environments," says Fournier. "On
both hillsides and moist flatland, HB-83 also
seemed to respond better to fertilizers than the
local varieties. On dry flatland its yield
superiority was greater under no fertilization.
Thus investing in seed would represent only a
small risk for most farmers, if they could use
even a minimal amount of fertilizer."

26 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

"Promotion packages such as 'kilo-for-kilo' (whereby farmers

receive improved seed for planting and repay with an equal weight

of grain at harvest) would probably go very far in promoting

adoption of new cultivars."

S... .. ......
...... .....

An isolated, Subsistence World
Fournier did his study in a 1,800-square-
kilometer zone of the Polochic River basin in
three types of environments: dry flatbeds, moist
flatbeds, and the hillsides typical of many
remote maize cropping zones in Central
America. Nine-tenths of the people in the region
belong to Mayan Indian ethnic groups, and
many do not even speak Spanish. Most private
seed companies have little interest in markets in
remote locations like Polochic, and many
farmers continue to grow lower yielding
varieties of maize, using their own seed.

Hybrid HB-83 is based on CIMMYT materials
and was released in Guatemala in 1983.
According to CIMMYT agronomist Jorge
Bolafos, who worked for many years in Central
America, it is among the most productive
hybrids across a range of environments in the
region. "HB-83 has been a difficult hybrid to
surpass," he says.

Demand for Seed, but Few
Suppliers
According to Bolafios, most "farmer" seed in
Polochic is actually descended from improved,
open-pollinated varieties. "Improved materials
have somehow reached the place and come to
stay," he explains. Bolafos says the lack of
adequate seed production and distribution
services has stopped the adoption of new
varieties. "Promotion packages such as 'kilo-for-
kilo' would probably go very far in promoting

V:
j _

Grain yield
(t/ha)
) Local varieties
4
HB-83

3

-1
Fertilizer levels

Maize grain yield of local varieties and HB-83 without fertilizer
(FO) and at recommended (F1) and high levels of fertilizer (F2),
Polochic, Guatemala.

adoption of new cultivars." In kilo-for-kilo
programs, farmers receive improved seed for
planting and repay with an equal weight of
grain at harvest.

According to Fournier, in addition to sowing
hybrids, farmers in Polochic and similar areas
should be encouraged to adopt soil-conserving
practices. "Among other things, they should
avoid burning crop residues and increase the use
of mulches to protect soils from erosion and
conserve organic matter."

11 For more information:
Shivaji Pandey (s.pandey@cgiar.org)

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 27

Empowering Farmers

to Save Seed and

Diversity

When Ricarda Meza Reyes' husband was disabled, the
couple knew that they would be unable to farm for a long
time. Would their maize harvest last? Would there be
enough to eat and to sell? Because Meza learned how to
keep her maize safe from insects and diseases, the couple
made it through the two years in which her husband
recovered. A less visible benefit of her new knowledge is
that she preserved important maize landraces for sowing
once again in her fields.

Since 1997, researchers from CIMMYT and
Mexico's Instituto Nacional de
Investigaciones Forestales, Agricolas y
Pecuarias (INIFAP) have worked with
farmers in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca,
Mexico, to conserve the diverse maize
landraces in the area. Their efforts are
funded by Canada's International
Development Research Centre (IDRC).
"The challenge was taking what we
learned in the diagnostic phase of our
research-which characteristics farmers
valued in their maize, the range of
varieties they wanted, and the specific
traits that were important to them-and
moving to the intervention phase," says
Mauricio Bellon, CIMMYT human
ecologist and Oaxaca Project leader.
Researchers thought carefully about the
best ways to wed scientific concepts for
genetic resource conservation to practices
that would make a difference in farmers'
lives. "We concluded that training in maize
storage and seed selection could play an
important role in conserving genetic
diversity in these communities," says
Bellon, "and we developed a training
program based on farmers' knowledge of
these practices."

Bellon explains that better storage
practices, for example, keep seed in good
condition and less vulnerable to loss.
"Seed loss was a problem in the
communities where we worked, especially
for rare types of maize like the black- and
red-grained landraces." He adds that
improved storage practices also make the
family grain supply-and family income-
more secure.

Saving Seed and Grain
Training in storage constituted simple,
useful tips, ranging from cleaning the
storage area to the proper use of storage
pesticides and a silo. "We tried to find out
how farmers coped with the storage
problem and learned about the silos that
people were using in Amatengo, another
area of Mexico," says Irma Rosas, research
assistant. "The silo was a good way to
store grain and seed. During the farmer
training, we explained its advantages. We
also learned that many farmers were using
fostoxin, a storage pesticide, for their grain
but were not using it properly. They either
used too much or stored it in poorly sealed
containers."

28 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

Seed loss was a

problem in the

Central Valleys of

Oaxaca, especially

for rare types of

maize.

Manuel Martinez Garcia, from San Lorenzo
Albarradas in Oaxaca, was one of the first
farmers to benefit from the training. He is proud
to show the clean, cool area in his compound
where he keeps his maize seed. "Now I keep my
seed in good condition for a very long time," he
says. "Before we were losing so much each
harvest because of rodents, fungus, and disease."
Martinez stores his maize grain in his silo and
treats his maize seed with fostoxin, using what
he learned from the training. He will plant the
seed next year.

The training also gave farmers like Ricarda Meza
greater flexibility to keep seed for several
seasons. After an accident incapacitated Meza's
husband, the couple could not work the farm.
Because of the information she obtained in the
training course, Meza could support herself and
her husband on maize that she kept in storage for
two years. "Two years ago, I had a good crop,
and that's what we eat now. Before then, I had a
lot of infestation, and it was so fast and so bad! I
used to keep my maize in bags and didn't use
anything [to protect it]. Then I went for the
training. I came home and told my husband, and
we started applying the treatment to our maize."
Meza adds that previously they often had to sell
their maize before it got infested, at a low price.
"But now I can keep my maize, I don't have to
sell it quickly. When I need money, I take maize
to the city. As soon as the merchants there see
how nice my maize is, they all want to buy it!"
Now that her husband is well, Ricarda says they
will be planting the seed they have been keeping
for two seasons.

Selecting Seed to Maintain
Diversity
Training was also provided on seed selection in
the home and in the field. Farmers learned about
the characteristics to look for in plants in the field
and about the need for a broader base for
selecting seed at home. "Farmers selected seed
from a very small number of ears, which may
accumulate mutations that weaken the plant,"
Bellon explains. "By teaching farmers to have a
broader base in seed selection, we help them
maintain diversity, reduce the problem of
mutations, and perhaps improve yield stability."

Pedro L6pez Imazo from Santa Ana Zegache
attended the seed selection training at home and
in the field. In the varieties he grows, L6pez
wanted uniformity in the size of the maize grain
and wanted the maize stalks to be the same color.
At home, he carefully selected grains with the
traits he valued, and in the field he spray-painted
the husks of plants that he wanted. "Now I have
almost no plants with colored stalks," he says.
Encouraged by his success with the maize stalks,
L6pez is now experimenting with his pinto
(multicolored) maize variety.

Training Works for Farrr
and Posterity
A total of 742 farmers in the
Oaxaca area, 504 men and 238
women, have benefited from
the training since it began in
1999. The training, Bellon
says, was the result of a long
process that brought together
farmers, geneticists, breeders,
and social scientists. "The
project has a very
interdisciplinary approach.
We used what we learned
from the system and adapted
it to the intervention," he said.
"We focused not only on the
hardware-in other words,
the tools farmers used-but
also on the software, farmers' Rica
Ricar
knowledge. Basically, we
identified what was available,
why it was not working, and then we
provided ways to make it work."

r For more information: Mauricio Bellon
hcii: 7l (m.bellon@cgiar.org)

lers

da Meza saved her seed.

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 29

Maize Diversity in Oaxaca, Mexico:

Simple Questions but No Easy Answers

The basic question underlying the Oaxaca
Project (see p. 32) is simple, says Julien
Berthaud, a CIMMYT population geneticist:
"Can the genetic diversity of maize be
maintained or increased in smallholders' fields
while enhancing the welfare of the farmers?"

As scientists searched for answers to this
question, from farmers' silos to ultra high-
powered statistical computer packages, it
became clear that they would not find a single,
straightforward answer. In fact, says Berthaud,
"Our inquiry has led to more questions whose
answers turn out to be enormously complex."

What Are We
Conserving?
For starters: What is a landrace? Although a
landrace is generally assumed to be a local
"variety" produced over time through selection
by farmers, Berthaud contends that in the
Oaxaca study area, the landraces do not meet
the basic criteria of a variety: that they be
distinct, uniform, and stable.

So what are we trying to conserve, if not
landraces? "The active flow of genes," answers
Berthaud, "which carries traits that are of
value now or may be found to have value in
the future." Sustaining gene flow in farmers'
fields may not require maintaining landraces.
By trying to retain landraces in their current
form, we may doom conservation to failure.

"A decade ago," says Berthaud, "most people's
vision of in situ conservation was to put up a
fence, keep the farmers and the variety in a
state of suspended animation, and figure that
everything would stay as it was. But this will
not work. People have needs that may change
with the market-say, an emerging preference
for floury rather than flinty kernels-or with
the environment. For example, a series of dry
years will affect the supply of maize seed and
what is preferred for planting. The study area is
a dynamic environment, with new genes and
traits flowing in and out of it, even under the
most traditional systems."

Another reason that gene flow may be required
to maintain diversity, Berthaud explains, is the
accumulation of deleterious mutations. Small-
scale farmers select their own seed. Often they
choose the best ears at harvest and save seed
from only a few cobs-a logical approach but
one that increases deleterious mutations. As
defects accumulate, the variety loses its genetic
value.

"We know farmers are putting new diversity
into the system and in the process losing some
of the old alleles and traits," Berthaud
observes, "which raises several other questions.
Is this dynamic process in balance? And will the
current flow maintain the valued genetic
diversity?"

Tracking Gene Flows
and Diversity
Berthaud and graduate students Gael Pressoir
and Fabiola Ramirez Corona (all supported by
France's Institut de Recherche pour le
Developpement) are using two strategies to
track gene flows and determine genetic
diversity in the study area. In the first strategy,
they collected "seed lots"-a "lot" is a set of
seeds that a farmer regards as belonging to the
same variety-from randomly selected farmers
in six communities. The lots have undergone
molecular analysis to measure their diversity.

Berthaud: A static maize seed system
leads to a dead system.

"One possibility is that if everybody keeps
seed only from his or her own fields, the seed
lots will be quite different from farm to farm.
The other possibility is that there are many
seed exchanges, so everything is basically
about the same. We're trying to figure out, at
the genetic level, where we are in this broad
range of possibilities."

Another strategy for tracking gene flows takes
the team back to the farmers who purchased
local improved varieties at project
demonstrations in 2000 and 2001. What
happened to that seed? Did farmers store
some for future use? Mix it with their own
varieties? Lose it? Exchange it with other
farmers? "As we trace the history of the seed
lots," Berthaud says, "we hope to develop an
image of the evolution of diversity."

Knowledge of what is coming into and going
out of Oaxacan farmers' maize fields will
allow Berthaud to develop a model to
determine whether the genetic diversity in the
system is shrinking or expanding, and
whether it is stable and sustainable. It would
also help guide future efforts to enhance in
situ conservation. "If you want to maintain
some traits or diversity in general," says
Berthaud, "you need to understand the big
picture. If you play with only a part of the
system, you are almost certain not to achieve
the results you are seeking."

"Julien Berthaud's work has established that
a static maize seed system leads to a dead
system and that, in a dynamic system, new
materials need to be brought in," says project
leader Maurcio Bellon. "Perhaps farmers
know this, too, as some of them will bring in
seed from other regions when they observe
that their 'plants are getting tired.'We had
some appreciation of these dynamics, but we
didn't understand all the implications. Julien's
work brings us an added scientific
perspective."

Each year, drought strikes more than half of the area sown to
wheat in the developing world. If predictions are right, an even
larger expanse of land will become parched every year owing to
global warming, urbanization, and deforestation. As conditions
worsen, farmers will need varieties that tolerate drought and
farming practices that promote more efficient water use.

Thirty Percent More Wheat under Drought
New, hardy bread wheats in the pipeline at CIMMYT have been
designed to fit new, tougher circumstances. They are descended
from crosses between different types of wheat and
goat grass, one of wheat's wild relatives (see figure).
The new wheats have produced up to 30% more
grain for two years running in tests comparing them
to one of their parents under tough dryland
conditions. "I've worked in Australia, in a very dry
environment, for much of my life, and this is the
biggest breakthrough in drought tolerance I've ever
seen," says Timothy Reeves, director general of
CIMMYT. Drought tolerance genes inherited from
their wild ancestor have made all the difference.

The parent they beat is no loser-on the contrary, it is
a very high-yielding wheat that grows well in many
semiarid environments around the world. It has
endowed the new wheats with valuable traits:
resistance to several diseases, good grain quality,
and, more importantly, the innate capacity to
produce high yields with different amounts of
moisture. The new wheats switch on their drought
tolerance and express this high yielding capacity
under conditions that would shrivel most wheats.

Bread wheat
(drought
tolerant, but poor
agronomically)

4X

/

Bread wheat
S(improved, high
yielding, disease
resistant)

How Do the New Wheats Work?
The new wheats are meant for dry locations where
producers are changing the way they farm to make
better use of water, control soil erosion, and maintain Crosses
soil fertility. Some farmers have started doing very yielding,
little or no plowing and leaving the straw of the
previous crop on the soil surface (see p. 44).
Depending on climate, other farmers may plant their wheat deeper
than usual to take advantage of rainwater stored in the soil.

Visitors to drought experiments are impressed by the obvious
difference between the new bread wheats (in the background),
vigorously expressing drought tolerance genes inherited from a
wild ancestor, and their parents (in the foreground).

Seedlings of the new wheats are so vigorous they
can force their way up through crop residues and
from lower soil depths. This vitality comes from
deep roots that anchor them firmly in the ground
and from long, strong coleoptiles (developing
stems) that push right through the soil and any
stubble on the surface (see figure). After the

The new wheats also do well when rain is
sufficient to produce a good harvest, as happens
occasionally in some dry environments. They
take advantage of the added moisture to
produce more grain.

The key to getting the new wheats to yield as
much as possible is to grow them using the
right farming practices. This is facilitated by the
new wheats' versatility, for they can be sown
under different planting systems-for example,
on flat ground or on raised beds, with and
without crop residues on the soil surface, and
with little or no plowing. These useful traits will
give farmers in marginal environments the
flexibility they need to deal creatively with the
problem of water scarcity and the growing
demand for wheat.

In the last two decades, wheat yield potential has
risen more rapidly in marginal than in more
favorable environments. Data from CIMMYT's
International Spring Wheat Yield Nursery
(ISWYN) and the Elite Spring Wheat Yield Trial
(ESWYT) indicate that wheat yield potential in
drought-prone environments rose by about 3.1%
per year from 1979 to 1995, or approximately 80
kilograms per year. In contrast, wheat yield
potential in irrigated environments rose at about
1% (62 kilograms) per year (see figure).

What does this mean for farmers in marginal
areas in any given year? It means considerable
yield gains. In marginal areas in 1997, for
example, the wheat production increase resulting
from replacing older improved varieties with
newer ones was about 1.85 million tons.

What caused wheat yield potential to grow so fast
in marginal areas? In some cases, newer, higher
yielding wheat varieties developed for favored
areas finally became available (or "spilled over")
to farmers in more marginal areas. CIMMYT's
Veery wheats, for example, were originally
developed for favorable environments about two
decades ago, but they have adapted well to most
marginal environments. The Veery wheats and
their descendents have yielded better than other
cultivars in both high-yielding environments and
under reduced irrigation.

In other cases, breeders working in innovative
programs for marginal environments crossed
varieties with high yield potential to cultivars that
could resist drought. For example, Nesser, a
wheat bred from the high-yielding CIMMYT
variety Jupateco 75 and the drought-tolerant
Australian variety W3918A, has performed well
in the dryland environments of West Asia and
North Africa.

Average yield gain (%/yr)
0 n

S1979-95
2.0

1.0

Irrigated Drought prone High temperature

Wheat yield gains in favorable and marginal
environments, 1964-95.

These environments have also benefited
substantially from research spillovers. Using
data from ISWYN, researchers documented
that varieties bred locally for specific
environments had significant yield advantages
only for those environments, whereas
CIMMYT-related wheats demonstrated
significant yield advantages across several
environments.*

Projected growth in wheat productivity in
high-potential environments is not likely to
meet the growing demand for wheat over the
next 20 years. Given increasing population
pressure in the developing world, declining
investments in irrigation, and many other
factors, improved productivity in marginal
areas could be the key to food security in the
coming years.

About 130 wheats share the name "Bobwhite,"
but new research shows just how different they
are-and why that diversity matters.

Is every wheat called "Bobwhite" the same as P
others that share the name? Not really, as
scientists in CIMMYT's Applied Biotechnology
Center (ABC) determined this past year. In fact,
the differences between the Bobwhite sister lines
can be considerable.

Does it matter? It does to Bent Skovmand, head of
CIMMYT's Wheat Germplasm Bank. "I got tired
of going to conferences and hearing people say, ...
'Bobwhite is a Swiss wheat,' 'Bobwhite is an Molecular geneticist Warburton: Her work prevented
Israeli wheat,' 'Bobwhite came from here or valuable genetic resources from being lost.
there,"' he says. "They simply didn't know where
it came from."

This was too much for Skovmand, who
participated in groundbreaking work by Sanjaya
Rajaram, now director of CIMMYT's Wheat
Program, on the Bobwhite wheat cross in the
early 1970s. Skovmand's interest went beyond
getting the credits right. It engendered
collaboration with ABC molecular geneticist
Marilyn Warburton and cell biologist Alessandro
Pellegrineschi that identified several
"supertransformable" wheat lines and new
possibilities for molecular fingerprinting in
maintaining genetic diversity.

Genetic Testing for 129 Sisters
"Bobwhite is the generic name for a wheat cross,"
explains Skovmand. "We use such names because
it's difficult to recite long pedigrees, and the

names serve as a type of shorthand."
CIMMYT produced 129 Bobwhite sister lines
that merited preservation in its genebank and
were used by breeding programs worldwide.
Lines that were not named by a national
breeding program reverted to being called
Bobwhite. It is easy to see how this could lead
to confusion.

Molecular fingerprinting, Skovmand
surmised, could clearly document the identity
of the 129 Bobwhite sister lines and address a
key question for his genebank: Have
fingerprinting techniques advanced to the
point where they can be efficiently applied to
genetic resource conservation?

34 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

CIMMYT's wheat genebank
stores more than 155,000
accessions. Skovmand's dilemma
is to determine how many and
which related accessions must be
conserved to retain genetic
diversity. When a number of lines
appear to be representative of a
landrace or cross, they can be put
together, or "bulked," in the bank.
While this strategy is economical
and efficient, Skovmand has
resisted it because valuable
genetic traits can be lost when
bulking is too broad. If
fingerprinting could accurately
distinguish the 129 Bobwhite
sister lines and their genetic
relationships, it would help
determine when and how to
bulk selections.

An Identity Problem
for Biotech Research
Bobwhite's identity problem also
surfaced among researchers using
the lines for transformation
(genetic modification)
experiments. "We started
receiving reports from some labs
about low rates of transformation
with Bobwhite and encouraging
reports from other labs also using
a Bobwhite," observes
Pellegrineschi. "Did these
different results come from the
genetic diversity of the lines, or
from the techniques and
protocols used by the labs?"

Skovmand, Warburton, and
Pellegrineschi went to work.
Skovmand provided a full range
of Bobwhite lines to the two
scientists. Pellegrineschi set about
transforming the lines with a
simple selectable marker (which
signals whether a transformation
has been successful), while
Warburton assessed the potential
for a large-scale fingerprinting
service at the ABC.

CIMMYT is a core member of the Australian Cooperative Research Centre for
Molecular Plant Breeding (CRC-MPB). launched in 1997. Other members include the
University of Adelaide. Southern Cross University, the South Australian Research and
Development Institute, and the Victorian Department of Natural Resources and
the Environment.

This partnering, says David Hoisington, director of
CIMMYT's Applied Biotechnology Center (ABC), "brings the
knowledge of leading experts in molecular genetic analysis
for wheat right to CIMMYT's door. Clearly this knowledge
and the resources they provide will help us develop
products that directly benefit our clients in the developing
world." At the same time. CIMMYT provides the CRC-MPB
with access to its extensive germplasm collection as well as
its own widely respected expertise in wheat research, while
serving as a conduit to a range of international
organizations and resources.

Alessandro Pellegrineschi. ABC cell biologist, appreciates
the relationship. "The genes they've provided for
experiments on enhanced quality traits, male sterility in
wheat (which would promote the development of highly
productive hybrid wheats), and disease resistance may
prove extremely valuable as research progresses," he
declares. "And the CRC-MPB support for our Bobwhite work
was critical to identifying the supertransformable lines."

The CRC-MPB also supports research by CIMMYT molecular
geneticist Manilal William, who works on identifying
molecular markers linked to durable leaf rust resistance
genes, and that of Juan Jose Olivares and Magdalena
Salgado, doctoral candidates at the University of Adelaide
who are undertaking their dissertation research at CIMMYT.
Olivares focuses on the molecular genetics of drought in
wheat, and Salgado investigates the engineering of
thaumatin-like protein genes into wheat to provide
disease resistance.

Equally valuable, Pellegrineschi and William concur, has
been their interaction with Australian scientists. "It's been a
fantastic experience," says Pellegrineschi, "as they come
out with stimulating ideas and provide a great deal of
valuable information. I believe synergies have been
developed that help us all in our research, and I hope we
can continue building on this base."

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Not All Bobwhites Created Equal
Pellegrineschi's team inserted a marker gene into 200
embryos from each of the 129 sister lines. They
screened all embryos to determine the rate of
successful transformation. This process was repeated
three times for each variety, and an average rate
was derived.

"A lot of the lines had a transformation rate of zero,"
reports Pellegrineschi, "but we did come up with
five lines with transformation rates around 60%, and
one line-possibly our premier line for
transformation-with a rate of about 70%." He
confirmed the efficacy of those lines by transforming
and screening 2,000 embryos from each line and
growing them into plants.

This investigative effort was funded and supported
by Australia's Cooperative Research Centre for
Molecular Plant Breeding (see p. 35). Prior to this
research, Pellegrineschi relates, in its transformation
work the ABC had used a Bobwhite line that could
now be categorized as "quite mediocre." The newly
identified line increased the transformation rate
about sevenfold. Higher transformation rates
translate into more efficient transfer of genes and
traits and lower costs. Given that just a year or two
ago wheat transformation rates of 5% were
considered good and 10% exceptional, these
"supertransformable" lines, called MPB-Bobwhite26
and MPB-Bobwhite29, have elicited great interest in
CIMMYT and major laboratories worldwide.

Diversity Rescued
Warburton, meanwhile, fingerprinted 101 Bobwhite
sister lines using amplified fragment length
polymorphism (AFLP) technology. "It was the first
opportunity to maximize the efficiency of the
procedures for large-scale fingerprinting," she says,
"and the experience gained through the work made
it worthwhile."

The first thing Warburton's team determined was
that although the sister lines came from the same
cross and even fourth- and fifth-generation
populations, there was enough diversity among
them to warrant maintaining them separately in
the genebank.

"This result shows how unwise it would have been
to bulk these lines in the bank," Skovmand observes.
"If we had done that, we never would have found
the highly transformable wheat lines. Obviously the
lessons learned here go beyond Bobwhite."

An important serendipitous finding, according to
Warburton, was that translocations can greatly
skew an analysis of diversity. Translocations are
fragments of a chromosome that replace a similar
fragment in another species, which is often the
result or goal of a wide crossing experiment. "Our
AFLP fingerprinting and analysis showed two
distinct clusters among the Bobwhite lines, a totally
unexpected outcome," she says. "We discovered
that the clustering stemmed from a translocation
from rye. Using AFLPs that did not fall in the
translocated region, we found that the sister lines
did not divide into those clusters and were actually
a lot closer to one another."

By identifying diagnostic markers for these and
other translocations, Warburton can look for factors
that might distort analyses of genetic relationships
between lines, as well as tell breeders whether
useful genes from the translocation are present in
their latest selections, thereby accelerating breeding.
Cytology already allows such diagnostics, but at a
higher cost.

The Cost of Discovering
Genetic Relationships
Cost, Warburton has confirmed, is a critical factor in
DNA fingerprinting. To reduce costs, Warburton is
exploring the use of diversity arrays. "A single
diversity array reaction provides the same amount
of information we'd get from running 38 gels," she
explains. "We'll be running experiments and cost
analyses on this technology to see if diversity arrays
are an economical alternative."

"The Bobwhite research has shown how useful
fingerprinting at CIMMYT can be," concludes
Warburton. "If we continue bringing down costs,
we hope to help the genebank with its work and
extend the benefits of this technology to many more
clients, both within and outside of CIMMYT."

With Bobwhite's identity crisis resolved and many
lessons learned along the way, the three scientists
conclude that a hidden benefit of the work was the
communication it promoted among them. "Before
this study, I don't think that Marilyn or Alessandro
were well versed in selection histories," says
Skovmand, "and I certainly learned a lot about
fingerprinting and genetic transformation from
them. These interactions can help us recognize
other opportunities for collaboration."

Like the persistent drip-drip of a leaky faucet, the concern for dwindling water resources is
preoccupying researchers, policy makers, and farmers across South Asia. Either from climate changes
that bring more frequent and severe droughts, intense agricultural draw-down on aquifers, or water-
guzzling urban growth, few disagree that a serious water crisis looms for South Asia.

Fewer Drops in South
Asia's Bucket
According to information from the International
Water Management Institute (IWMI), by 2025
Pakistan and large parts of India will suffer
"absolute water scarcity." This means they will
lack the fresh water needed to maintain current
levels of irrigated agriculture and will even have
to shift water out of agriculture to meet domestic,
industrial, and environmental demands. Raj
Gupta, CIMMYT scientist and regional facilitator
of the Rice-Wheat Consortium for the Indo-
Gangetic Plains (RWC),* a researcher with
considerable experience in water issues, talks of
the region's "double jeopardy" concerning water
supplies and quality: "Excessive pumping is
depleting subsoil water in many regions, while in
others poor drainage is raising water tables nearly
to the surface, creating sodic or saline conditions."

Is Hunger Mining Soils?
The latter point touches on another, more
immediate concern for rice-wheat farmers:
declining soil quality. The rising demand for food
and the subdivision of agricultural land over
successive generations have intensified land use
to the point where fallowing is practically
unthinkable. The average per capital holding in
Asia is now only 0.3 hectares, compared with 2.8
hectares for sub-Saharan Africa. Khushi

Muhammed and his sons, for example, support a
15-member household in Sheikupura District,
Pakistan, by growing rice and wheat on about 20
hectares-but he shares this land with three
brothers. In Bayana Village, Uttar Pradesh, India,
farmer Pramod Tyagi and his family work 12
hectares, producing potatoes, green vegetables,
rice, wheat, lentils, and peas to support a
household of 21 persons.
What are the practical effects of these problems?
Start with organic matter. Many farmers remove as
much as 10 tons of straw per hectare over an entire
year's cropping. Some is used for fodder, but much
is burned, filling the region's air with unhealthy
soot for a month or more and robbing the soil of
organic material. Declining soil fertility-among
other things from the unbalanced or insufficient
use of fertilizer-is also affecting crop yields.
Finally, yearly puddling of soils for rice, followed
by intensive tillage for wheat-an average 6-7
tractor passes-obliterates soil structure and, in
many areas, creates a nearly impenetrable "plow
pan" immediately beneath the topsoil.

* Led by South Asian agricultural research systems, the RWC is an
alliance of those systems, international research centers, and
advanced research institutes. CIMMYT contributes technical and
management support. The RWC fosters sustainable improvements in
agroecosystem productivity, together with the preservation of
natural resources, in areas of the Indo-Gangetic Plains dominated
by rice-wheat cropping patterns.

Time for Less Tillage
Arguably, the same agricultural policies that
brought food self-sufficiency to South Asia have
helped bring on these dilemmas (see p. 53), and
central governments are slowly reforming
policies to encourage innovation, productivity,
and resource conservation.

However, certain researchers, among them
CIMMYT agronomist Peter Hobbs, began
proposing more sustainable farming options for
South Asia more than a decade ago. Their ideas
began with the soil-the indispensable resource
base for all agriculture. "We've been hammering
on tillage as a platform for a suite of options to
lower costs, increase productivity, and improve
soils," says Hobbs. "In recent years we've
realized that reduced tillage also saves water and
cuts greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture."

Working through the RWC, Hobbs and associates
in national research programs have helped
farmers test and share a wheat seeding practice
that reduces costly and time-consuming
cultivation to a single tractor pass. This simple
amendment of sowing wheat directly into rice
stubble, known as zero-tillage, has an astonishing
range of benefits.

more effectively, reducing their growth and the
need for herbicides. In many cases, yields
improve because the grain matures before the
pre-monsoon heat can wilt it. Moreover, since it
enables wheat to take advantage of residual
moisture from rice, zero-tillage saves farmers
around 1 million liters of water per hectare,
compared with conventional practices. This
water may represent an actual savings
(important if farmers are eventually charged
more for water and related expenses), or it may
be used elsewhere for productive agriculture.
Finally, by burning an average 60-70 liters less
diesel fuel per hectare sown, tractors emit much
less carbon dioxide under zero-tillage-nearly
800,000 tons less, if the practice were adopted
even on 5 million of the rice-wheat region's 12
million hectares.

Adoption at Full Throttle
In the 2000-01 crop season, use of zero-tillage in
the western Indo-Gangetic Plains (India and
Pakistan's breadbaskets) increased to around
100,000 hectares, expanding from 12,000 the
previous year and only 1,200 the year before that
(see figure, next page). "The pace of adoption
now depends mainly on the speed at which
private manufacturers can make zero-tillage
planters," says Larry Harrington, director of
CIMMYT's Natural Resources Group. The four-
wheel tractor version of the planter costs about
US$ 400-well within reach of tractor operators'
budgets, since a single planter can sow an
average of 80 hectares per season. More farmers
without tractors can hire sowing services,
because zero-tillage reduces the cost of sowing.
This saves the farmers money and frees up their
time for other profitable activities. A variant of
the zero-tillage planter is available for the two-
wheel tractors used in the eastern rice-wheat
regions, and another reduced tillage option that

R.K. Naresh (right), agronomist at the Agricultural
University of Uttar Pradesh extension agency, has
worked with farmers throughout that northern India
state to promote zero-tillage and other resource-
conserving options. Farmers require science's help to
deal with the huge amounts of residue produced in
rice-wheat cropping and to diversify to other crops.

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India and Pakistan. These figures are b
a recent, region-wide survey on the nu
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to farmers and the fact that each plant
sow at least 80 hectares of wheat per c
season. The area for 2001-02 represents
conservative estimate.

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requires no machinery at all is being tested and
promoted by the RWC for the farmers with
fewest resources.

/ Finally, building on trust gained through
successful promotion of zero-tillage, the RWC is
testing another innovation-growing crops on
raised soil beds. Water savings under bed
planting are even more dramatic than those for
S zero-tillage alone, and average between 30% and
50%. "Farmers are testing beds mainly with
wheat right now, but we look forward to a time
when rice and many other crops will be grown
mI~|2 on permanent beds, with no tillage necessary
throughout the year," says CIMMYT wheat
large in agronomist Ken Sayre, who with many
asked colleagues in South Asia and the RWC is
ased on
promoting beds and other resource-conserving
mber of land management practices.
available
er can
dropping
a

Farmer-Driven Research
By and large, farmers testing zero-tillage
say they intend to continue using the
practice, and they are vociferously
apprising researchers of the improvements
needed. "Rather than spend long years
'cooking' technologies on experiment
stations, the RWC and its partners have
given farmers promising technologies to
test under their conditions," says Gupta.
"Now farmers are coming back and
asking for focused assistance." According
to Mushtaq Ahmad Gill, who leads the
On-farm Water Management Directorate
(OFWM) of Punjab Province, Pakistan,
this approach has been crucial: "If the last
five years of our efforts to promote
resource-conserving technologies like
zero-tillage have taught us anything, it's
that we must work with the farmers."

Water at Issue?
Gill is convinced that resource-conserving
practices are essential if South Asia's
farmers are to deal with water shortages,
energy constraints, the demands of
exploding populations, and global
economic and marketing challenges.
"Water is the lifeblood of Pakistan's crops
and economy. Persistent drought has
reduced canal water supplies and caused
the mining of aquifers, the deterioration of
water quality, higher production costs,
and lower wheat yields," he says. "We
must learn to grow more rice and wheat
with less water, less energy, and less land.
The simple answer is conservation tillage.
In about 200 villages of Punjab, more than
4,000 farmers who used locally developed
equipment to grow wheat on 30,000
hectares with zero-tillage last year got 17%
more yield than conventional tillage,
besides saving about 3,000 rupees per
hectare on tillage, diesel, herbicides, and
water. These farmers are the salesmen of
this innovative technology for the region."

- For more information:
''1 Peter Hobbs (p.hobbs@cgiar.org)

Joint Efforts by CGIAR Centers
and Funding Partners on Rice-
Wheat Systems
With newly approved funding from the Asian Development Bank (ADB),
several CGIAR centers and partners are launching a series of
collaborative projects through the Rice Wheat Consortium (RWC) on
issues central to rice-wheat cropping systems and agriculture in South
Asia. Topics include the following: salt and water balances; the
cultivation of rice on raised beds; nutrient, weed, and soil management in
rice-wheat systems; crop diversification, including potatoes; and the
introduction of legume crops in rice-wheat systems. "The focus will be on
farmer participatory research, although some of the work involves more
basic research as well," says J.K. Ladha, IRRI rice-wheat coordinator and
a soil scientist who has worked for years in the region. "All the key issues
will be covered-crops, soil, water, and diversification."

The collaboration features participation at each research site by most
international centers that work through the RWC. The ADB project is
just one of many conducted by the Consortium, and it relies on
complementary support from other approved projects, national
programs, and international centers. Over the years a number of
generous partners including ADB have supported the RWC. Among them
are the following:
SThe Directorate General, International Cooperation of the Government
of the Netherlands (DGIS)
SThe CGIAR Finance Committee
SThe Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR)
SThe Department for International Development, UK (DFID)
SThe International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
SThe United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
According to RWC facilitator, Raj Gupta, ADB supported the Consortium
in its early efforts to set up an ecoregional program focused on natural
resource management. "Their new funding is allowing us to improve
cooperation between international centers and national programs," he
says. "Contributions from the CGIAR Finance Committee, obtained with
help from the World Bank, were crucial when other support had waned.
In recent years, DGIS has provided generous, unfettered contributions for
testing and promoting technologies such as zero-tillage. ACIAR, USAID,
DFID, and IFAD have also assisted with money for key research, and we
are just beginning another project with funding from New Zealand."
Finally, national research systems of the participating countries have also
provided funding and significant in-kind support for RWC activities, and
international centers like CIMMYT have drawn on their own unrestricted
funds to ensure that work goes forward.

.2pI. 'a-----1' P; Cr c
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Farmers Keep

Breeders on

Target

in South Asia

When it comes to wheat, women farmers around Bankatti in the southern lowlands of Nepal know what
they like: a variety that withstands disease and insect attack, makes good chapatis flatbreadd), and
produces lots of grain. In contrast, Bankatti men prefer wheats that tolerate heat and produce large,
white grain that does not shatter when harvested.

Ten men and ten women farmers voiced those
opinions during a participatory variety selection
exercise in their village. Outcomes of similar events
organized by researchers from CIMMYT and
national programs (in this case, the Nepal
Agricultural Research Council) in other villages of
northern Pakistan, northeastern India, and Nepal are
now guiding breeding research-specifically, the
selection of materials to use and crosses to make.

"The preferences of the two groups in Bankatti
reflect their roles in the household," says
CIMMYT wheat breeder Guillermo Ortiz-
Ferrara, who is leading this effort. "Women
farmers store the grain and make the bread,
while the men, who sell the surplus grain, are
more concerned with'filling the sacks.' "
One choice of both males and females in several
villages of Nepal was the recently released

44 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

"When we started doing

participatory selection in the hills of

Nepal, we found that 90% of the

wheat was of an obsolete variety that

was very susceptible to diseases."

variety BL-1473. They liked its ability to stand up
under a full head of grain, the large, white grains
it produces, its abundant straw yield, and its
rapid growth. As a result, Nepal's public seed
enterprise will hasten production of BL-1473, in
hopes of farmers being able to sow it next crop
cycle. Researchers have provided foundation seed
of BL-1473 for 80 farmers in Nepal's hill area who
will increase the seed and sell it to peers.

Farmers in Sultanabad, Gilgit District, in the
northern hill region of Pakistan, consistently
preferred three varieties that possess good
resistance to the fungal diseases known as rust
and yielded 30-40% more grain than Suneen, the
popular but disease-prone local variety. Two of
the three new varieties also produced more straw
than Suneen. Seed of these varieties will be
multiplied for distribution to as many farmers as
possible. Next season scientists from the National
Agricultural Research Centre narcC), the Agha
Khan Rural Support Program, and CIMMYT will
use participatory selection to hasten adoption of
new cultivars there.

Working Where Help is
Most Needed
Wheat production is an economic mainstay in the
eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains but lags far behind
its potential: average yields are only half those of
wheat in the Punjab of India, for example. The
low productivity will simply not meet the
demand of the region's populace, which is
growing by 2.2% each year. For the last three crop
seasons, Ortiz-Ferrara and Etienne Duveiller,
CIMMYT wheat pathologist in South Asia, have
been working with farmers in the eastern Indo-
Gangetic Plains to test and select more productive
wheat varieties and agronomic practices that
conserve resources.

"When we started doing participatory selection in the
hills of Nepal, we found that 90% of the wheat was of
an obsolete variety that was very susceptible to
diseases," says Duveiller. "Newer, disease resistant
varieties were available but accounted for only 10%
of the wheat. Farmers hadn't accepted them, either,
because they didn't meet their needs, they hadn't
heard of them or, if they had, there wasn't enmui
seed. This is typical of the obstacles keeping
new varieties from reaching farmers in this
region." Participatory selection has proven
an effective way to clear such hurdles.
Varieties and practices developed in
tandem with farmers are more likely to
meet their needs and quickly become
familiar to them. Follow-up research
and seed production are keyed to
farmers' demands.

In addition to increasing productivity each
season, switching to new varieties reduces the
overall risk of disease epidemics, inasmuch a il
expands the range of varieties sown. A diver-t
patchwork of varieties confounds a disease's chances
of ruining an entire region's crop. Use of single
varieties over large areas has been a problem in South
Asia, causing multi-million dollar losses in Pakistan
in the early 1990s, when a stripe rust epidemic
destroyed the wheat crop (see related story, p. 15).

Zero-Tillage on the Rise
As is occurring elsewhere in the Indo-Gangetic
Plains, participatory research has helped farmers in
the east overcome initial reservations about sowing
wheat directly into rice stubble with no tillage (see p.
44), and they are now buying the requisite zero-
tillage planters. With support from the Indian
Council for Agricultural Research, Banaras Hindu
University, CIMMYT, and other organizations, many
rice-wheat farmers in eastern Uttar Pradesh are using
the improved wheat variety HUW-468 and resource-
conserving practices like zero-tillage to sow earlier,
save on diesel fuel, and increase yields. Ramjiv, a
typical rice-wheat farmer in the region, has thus
boosted his wheat harvests from a mere half ton to
four tons per hectare. A large-scale effort involving
extension agencies and local NGOs is helping
farmers to test and adopt these technologies.

Researchers have used quick and inexpensive
participatory rural appraisal techniques to ensure
that the problems of maize farmers in Asia's
marginal areas are brought to the attention of
people who can solve them.

In early 2001, a network of researchers gathered
information from maize farmers in upland areas in
China, India, Indonesia, Nepal, the Philippines,
Thailand, and Vietnam. The information will help
bring the problems and constraints of these
farmers to the attention of policy makers and
scientists, with the goal of developing a maize
intensification program that considers rural
people's needs and is environmentally friendly.
The participatory rural surveys represent the
initial phase of a three-year project supported by
the International Fund for Agricultural
Development (IFAD). The project promotes
equitable distribution of income and improved
food security for poor and marginalized maize
farmers in Asia. Asia alone will account for 60% of
the global increase in maize demand in the next
two decades. Maize demand in the region is
expected to grow from 138 million tons (in 1993) to
243 million tons in 2020. The increased demand
will have serious implications for poor and
marginalized farmers in upland areas, where most
maize production in Asia has been concentrated.

Thailand: Concerns of the Poor
Brought to Light
The village of Baphai Deng, in the province of
Nakorn Ratchaseesima, Thailand, is one of 24
communities visited by Benchaphun Ekasingh,
project collaborator from Chiang Mai University,
and her team of researchers. Dividing the farmers

into two separate groups, Ekasingh and her team
elicited information about the crops they grew,
land preparation practices, crop varieties used,
and the constraints they faced. The poorest of the
12 districts in the area, almost a two-hour drive
over a hilly and bumpy dirt road from the nearest
commercial center-good weather permitting-
Baphai Deng is typical of villages surveyed across
the seven countries.
"Most of these are marginalized communities
where maize is the main income earner. In many
places we visited there were not many
alternatives. Even if these farmers are growing
other crops, they don't bring in much income.
Some farmers have attempted to move from
maize but were not successful. Low income from
maize and rising costs of production are the main
problems," Ekasingh says.
The information gathered, she adds, will bring to
light issues that are not so evident to researchers
and policy makers.
"Researchers and policy makers don't have
enough information about problems affecting
maize production, especially small-scale farmers,
and this survey will reveal those problems. It will
also bring out other information that is not so
visible to policy makers or researchers, like the
environmental risks that are associated with
intensifying maize cropping, and equity issues,"
she explains.

Nepal: Pressure on Isolated
Farm Communities
Throughout much of Asia, rapid economic growth
and accelerating urbanization is changing food
consumption patterns from traditional rice diets to
greater consumption of meat, which in turn leads
to increased demand for maize for animal feed.
This pattern is evident in Nepal, where maize is
the primary food crop for most of the hill areas.

46 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

According to Dularchan Sahu Pathik, Director for
Crops and Horticulture at the Nepal Agricultural
Research Council narcC), demand for maize,
both for food and fodder, is increasing and is
estimated to grow from 6% to 8% over the next 20
years. "Presently we are importing. This is a very
important crop and we are looking into ways to
increase production." He adds that the biggest
constraints for maize farmers are the lack of
improved seed and losses after harvest, when
insects and disease can eat away the stored maize
grain. "In some districts, storage losses were
reported to be as high as 50%."

Using seven teams of researchers, CIMMYT post-
doctoral fellow Kamal Raj Paudyal surveyed
farmers in 17 hill districts in Nepal. Some of the
areas they visited were remote, and researchers
were faced with a number of challenges.

"In some areas, people

hardly see outsiders and are

reluctant to say exactly how

things are."

"We wanted to finish the survey immediately
after the summer harvest, but despite the late
monsoon, the rains continued and most of the
roads were closed," said Paudyal. "Some hill
areas were very difficult. One of our teams spent
about eight or nine days walking to the site and
two days interviewing. In some areas, people
were reluctant to respond. Some were afraid.
They hardly see outsiders and are reluctant to say
exactly how things are."

On one of the visits, farmers from Bhandari
Village in Dolakha, who transplant millet into
standing maize or grow it after the maize harvest,
talked about the lack of irrigation technology. "If
we have pre-monsoon rain, it helps with the
maize germination. But when we have to wait for
the monsoon, the situation gets difficult for us,"

said a farmer in the village. "We can't harvest on
time, we can't go for millet, and that means only
one crop. If we have irrigation, we can harvest the
maize on time and go for millet. We can plant
millet in standing maize, but it means more labor
and the production is not so good. If we plant
after maize, the production is better."

Younger members of the community have other
concerns. For 20-year-old Madhuram Karki, the
problem was poor access to information and new
technology. "There are no sources of information.
Most often we learn by tradition or see how
others do things when we travel to different
places. If we see people cultivating in a different
way and if the crops are good, we ask them to tell
us how they do it."

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 47

"Labor is getting to be

a problem with

younger people going

to live in cities."

While there are extension workers and services
in Nepal, Paudyal explains that the areas they
have to cover are too large and the hills prohibit
quick access.

The Philippines: Farm Assistance
Goes Only So Far
To characterize maize production systems in Asia's
upland areas, researchers are identifying and
mapping key maize-growing areas as well as
gathering preliminary data on farmers. In the
Philippines, this second activity brought CIMMYT
economist Roberta Gerpacio to northern Luzon,
where she met with local researchers, agronomists,
extension workers, and farmers. Earlier, she had
completed collecting data from nine areas in
Mindanao, the major maize-growing area in the
Philippines. In northern Luzon, Gerpacio learned
not only about the farmers, but also about the
assistance that was being provided to them.

"In Cagayan, the agricultural district office helps
farmers with new technologies like hybrid seed or
organic fertilizer, under a government program.
They also try to assist with production
intensification by providing mechanical dryers and
tractors to farmers' groups or collectives in the
community," she says. Despite this assistance,
problems remain.

For some of the farmers in the area, like Teodora
Kuntapay from Isabela, the high price of inputs
and shortage of labor are constraints. Kuntapay
works five hectares with her husband and hired
labor. "What I get from my farm is not enough. I
have to support myself with other activities like
raising poultry and pigs. My children are grown
and have their own families, and they give a little
to help. But the cost of inputs, especially labor, is
high, and the price of maize is low, especially after
harvest," she says.

Limited credit is another problem. "Many of these
farmers need credit support from the government,
but now the government does not buy back the
maize and farmers are forced to sell maize at lower
prices," she says.

Some farmers are assisted by farmer cooperatives
like the Villaluna Multipurpose Cooperative, which
recently acquired two tractors. "Labor is getting to
be a problem with younger people going to live in
cities, and we are looking into mechanized farming
to cope with the problem," one of the officers
explains. "We got a loan from a bank which we
have to pay in seven to ten years, and with that
money we bought a mechanical planter, harvester,
dryer, silo, and other small farm equipment."

From Personal Stories to
Practical Policies
These and many other personal stories, heard in
rural areas in all of the countries involved in the
project, are yielding data and information that will
be brought to the scientific community through
research and development planning meetings and
to policy makers through policy dialogues. "The
IFAD Project hopes to give these marginalized
farmers the chance to be heard. It is crucial that
maize producers be given more attention and
support," Gerpacio says.

In northwestern India and the Punjab of Pakistan, modern agricullure-spearheaded by
improved varieties-produced a flush of prosperity over the past several decades.
Knowledgeable observers comment on India's emerging middle class: agriculture
contributed to its growth and to infrastructure development in rural zones. Even so,
many people still lack access to adequate food supplies, and policy and other
innovations are needed to usher South Asia's agriculture and hard-working, enterprising
farmers into the global marketplace.

Farmers Speak of Progress 7
Like farmers everywhere, those in South '
Asia complain about rising production costs and ,
squeezed profits, but eventually they admit that
their livelihoods are better than before. In the
words of Chasan Veer Singh, a 53-yeaiold
farmer from Sultanpur, Ghaziabad District, Uttar
Pradesh, India: "Working conditions were much
harder when I was young, before tractors. Things
have changed since the 1960s, when the Mexican
wheat varieties arrived. Back then there were no
carts, roads, electricity-we did everything by
hand. We never went hungry, but work was
harder. Ladies used to grind grain and men
chopped fodder by hand; now everything is
mechanized. Previously people used to walk to '
other villages; now at least most families have a
motor scooter."

Agriculture: Subsistence
or Profitable Sideline?
Many forces lie behind this progress, not the least
being the productivity of rice-wheat rotations.
New circumstances are putting hard
environmental and economic choices to rice-
wheat farmers. While some stand pat on
tradition, many others, like Chasan, are risk
takers. Says Chasan: "We must experiment to 1
increase production." Sudesh Pal Singh: He has a degree in
mathematics but chose the fields of
northwestern India over a faculty job.

Farmer Khushi Muhammed: "We depend totally

on the grace of God, because otherwise we have

nothing. But last year we saved some money and

bought a zero-tillage planter. We've left our

traditional system behind."

Positive experiences with new technologies such as
zero-tillage have recently gained converts to the
"farmer-experimenter" fold. According to Khushi
Muhammed, Sheikupura District, Punjab, Pakistan:
"We depend totally on the grace of God, because
otherwise we have nothing. But last year we saved
some money and bought a zero-tillage planter. Now
we'll sow all our land under zero-tillage and on
beds. We've left our traditional system behind."

Conversation with farmer Pardeep Singh, of Matiala
Village in Ghaziabad, India, is all business. "We
have learned that, wherever you go, you can
succeed with hard work," he says. But Pardeep
obviously cimbinc- .. 1i, i, ith c:l ir '. a*.in. .-\ sh
who left Pak, i-tan at p\ai tltin nd -ettled in ndi.- -
Punjab, Parde.i p to.htie mi '. d tl (. -IlaL i d in
1970 in sea;ch it land. He tand Ii- t.imal, i- t dlti
and occupied a tract ot saline soil that local farmers
had spurned. Pardeep has since expanded his
father's holdings to 20 hectares and is looking for
more land. "In this way, I can make farm operations
more efficient," he explains. His medium- to long-
term projects include diversifying away from
intensive rice-wheat production. For the time being,
Pardeep is experimenting successfully with zero-
tillage and bed planting. He hopes that one day
farming will be a sideline, rather than the sole
livelihood, for his two school-age children.

Some farmers are taking advantage right now of
opportunities to diversify, based on zero-tillage and
bed planting. Sudesh Pal Singh, of Sultanpur
Village, Uttar Pradesh, India, has about 3.5 hectares
on which he grows a sugarcane-wheat rotation and
a gram-sugarcane rotation, in addition to oats for
fodder, to support the four members of his
immediate household. Dairy production is a chief
source of household revenue. The family has five
milk buffalo, ten cows, seven calves, and one bull.
Every day Sudesh's oldest son goes out on a scooter
to sell milk by the liter to villagers.

Sudesh and his family began experimenting
with zem-tillage and bed planting for the first
time in 2000, thanks to the extension work of
R.K. Nassh, agronomist in the Uttar Pradesh
Agricultural University extension agency, Krishi
Vigyan Kendra. Sudesh is considering growing
a cwp of mungbean while the rattoon (the
second gcwth of sugarcane) emerges. His main
goal, however, is eventually to expand dairy
production on his homestead.

Needed: Policies that
Support Enterpreneurs
Not all farmers in India and Pakistan are so
well of Accoding to a May 2001 article in The
Economist, for example, around 25% of all farmers
in India pFduce 60% of the country's agricultural
output. The remainder are either subsistence
farmers or landless laborrs. But agriculture in both
countries has performed admirably in the past and
is poised to serve once mor as an engine of growth,
it I'.- tn the chance.

it 1- L' coming apparent that policies to ensure
natilin.il food security, once a force for progress, may
now have exactly the opposite effect. Worse, these
policies appear to exacerbate soil and water
management problems, according to a recent article*
by Prabhu Pingali, a native of Hyderabad, India, and
director of the CIMMYT Economics Program, and
Manishah Shah, former CIMMYT research associate.
Among other things, Pingali and Shah argue that
subsidies-such as "cheap" water, fertilizer,
pesticides, and credit-have reduced farmers'
incentives for improving input-use efficiency:
"Techniques for improving fertilizer-use efficiency
are available, for example, but will only be viable at
the farm level when fertilizer subsidies are removed.
The same is the case with the adoption of zero-
tillage, integrated pest management techniques,
or mar judicious water management."

Reforms suggested by other experts include
new policies that allow farmers to consolidate
fragmented land holdings, thereby making
mechanization and other agricultural investments
profitable. Finally, farmers need quality transport
and storage infrastructure to diversify crops and
access markets opportunely.

* See P.L. Pingali and M. Shah, "Policy re-directions for sustainable resource use: The rice-wheat cropping system of the Indo-Gangetic Plains," in P.K. Kataki
(ed.), The Rice-Wheat Cropping System of South Asia-Trends, Constraints, Productivity and Policy (Binghamton, New York, Food Products Press, 2001).

*1 a"
_. I
rCSm^A '>!~J

C~rtfl--~R~

According to Mangala Rai, deputy director
general (Crop Science) for the Indian Council of
Agricultural Research (ICAR) and member of
CIMMYT's Board of Trustees, Green Revolution
technologies have remained the cornerstone of
the nation's strategy for food security, health for
all, rural development, natural resource
conservation, and poverty alleviation. "During
the Green Revolution era, technological change
in agriculture arose from the introduction of
one or mor inputs, the costs for which were
largely borne by the public purse," he says.
"In adapting to new esource-conserving
technologies, the challenges are about changing
mindsets and having farmers bear the capital
costs of change. We have tilled soils too much
for too long."

Rai also cites weakened extension systems as having
impaired, rather than encouraged, the adoption of
knowledge-intensive agriculture. "Fortunately, the
Rice Wheat Consortium's farmer participatory
approach has surmounted this obstacle," he says.
Farmers in South Asia have already demonstrated
their capacity for hard work and their willingness to
change. Like managers of intensive cropping
systems in other parts of the world, rice-wheat
farmers possess a keen entrepreneurial spirit that
perhaps has yet to be fully tapped. Asked what he
likes about farming, Pramod Tyagi, of Bayana in
Uttar Pradesh, India, answers: "Every crop that
gives a good cash return!"

B For more information:
Prabhu Pingali (p.pingali@cgiar.org)

I,

N%

Ww"

Seeds of Life

Five CGIAR centers-CIAT, CIMMYT, CIP, ICRISAT, and IRRI-have joined with
international agencies to offer improved seed to the conflict-ravaged people of
East Timor for growing major food crops.

Timor

The Seeds of Life project was launched and funded
by the Australian Centre for International
Agricultural Research (ACIAR) in 2000. Aside from
the CGIAR centers, participants include World
Vision International and Catholic Relief Services.
Work on the ground is coordinated by the
Department of Agricultural Affairs (DAA) of the
East Timor Transitional Administration (ETTA),
United Nations Transitional Administration in East
Timor (UNTAET), and extends over 2000-03.
A Portuguese colony for 400 years and an
Indonesian province as of 1974, East Timor voted
for independence in 1999. Civil conflicts disrupted
farming and markets, among other things, leaving
a shortage of quality seed of basic crops.
Emergency relief seed came, but it was often poorly
adapted to local conditions.
ACIAR thus designed a project to re-establish food
production through systematic restocking with top
quality, locally adapted seed. CIMMYT is
contributing with maize, a crop produced on
nearly 60,000 hectares and a staple in East Timor.
Per capital annual income in East Timor is just over
US$ 200-equivalent to 55 cents a day.
"This project is helping the East Timorese rebuild
their future," says Fernando Gonzalez, CIMMYT
maize breeder in Asia who monitors maize trials
and provides other support to local researchers.
"Based on data and guidance from experienced

Maize farmers in East Timor stand to
gain a lot from improved varieties, as the
results from a recent trial in East Timor
show. The best CIMMYT variety
outyielded the local check by nearly 50%.

maize researchers, we selected varieties from
CIMMYT, Indonesia, and Thailand. Trials were
conducted at six locations representing different
agroecologies in the country. Results so far have
generated a lot of excitement. If you look at the
data from Maliana, several varieties in each trial
are outyielding the checks by 50% or more."
According to Gonzalez, seed of the best varieties
will be multiplied for distribution to farmers. The
next step is to validate the results and increase seed
of the best varieties, so that farmers can test them.
Staff of World Vision International, the Catholic
Relief Services, and the DAA are advising
researchers and will work with farmers to
establish trials and then help them manage and
evaluate the crops. "Farmers themselves will
participate in the final selection, using their own
criteria," says Gonzalez.

i For more information:
L.) 'U Fernando Gonzalez (f.gonzalez@cgiar.org)

52 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

for

East

Saving Ecosystems,

Long-Distanc

The Yaqui Valley, site of CIMMYT's primary
wheat experiment station, is one of just a few
regions around the world being observed by two
new NASA satellites. The Valley's unique
location, bounded on one side by the ocean and
by a mountain range on the other, gives
researchers the opportunity to investigate the
long-term effects of intensive farming on natural
marine and terrestrial ecosystems, which have
implications for global warming and, ultimately,
climate change.

A Long-Distance View to
Prevent Local Ecological
Failures
"The Valley is a wonderful lab for studying what
happens to neighboring ecosystems when
farming is intensified," says David Lobell of the
University of Colorado's Departament of
Geological Science and Environmental Studies.

Remote sensing, which started in the Yaqui Valley
in 1999 with Landsat 7, is a new way of watching
the highly productive area, which has been the
object of global attention for decades. It is the
birthplace of modern semidwarf wheats. Forty
percent of the wheat produced in the developing
world comes from irrigated environments like the
Yaqui Valley, so results of these investigations are
likely to be relevant far beyond Mexico-for
example, in the most important wheat-growing
areas of South Asia. This is significant, given that
in the next 25 years, 90% or more of the additional
wheat grain needed to feed the rising population
in developing countries will have to come from
intensive farming systems. As agriculture
intensifies, measures need to be taken to
minimize environmental damage and curtail the
emission of greenhouse gases.

Satellite images help researchers understand
the ecology of intensive farming systems in
Mexico. Their findings could have
implications for similar systems in South Asia.

In 2000, scientists working with the Landsat data
enlisted the help of CIMMYT researchers, who
were in an ideal position to provide on-the-
ground data to construct models for interpreting
the Landsat data. So far, the satellites' perceptions
have generally jibed well with CIMMYT's field
information.

The satellite technology is already helping farmers
in the Yaqui Valley. For three years, satellite
images predicted with a very small margin of
error (5% or less) how much wheat grain would
be produced in the Yaqui Valley. Made early in the
crop season, these predictions can help farmers to
avoid over-marketing their crop.

New Ways to Preserve
Ecosystems, Biodiversity
The new satellites are so sensitive they can pick
up detailed information on individual farmer's
fields. They can do more than tell
which crops farmers are growing -
today-they can tell which ones
they grew several months ago.
Based on the images, CIMMYT
scientists may soon be able to tell
producers, for example, why their
fields do not yield as much as
others, enabling them to find the
right solution to their problems.

"Everything we learn from this
project* will help develop cropping
practices that are highly productive
but minimize the impact of farming "
on adjacent ecosystems," comments
Ivan Ortiz-Monasterio, CIMMYT
agronomist collaborating on this
study. "Satellite images, combined
with models, could help estimate
A satellite image of northwestern Mexico
reveals algae forming off of the coast,
perhaps as a result of fertilizer runoff.

Global Research for Local Livelihoods 53

how much of the nitrogen applied to
fields goes into the groundwater, the
atmosphere, or the ocean via the
drainage system. For example,
nitrogen that ends up in the ocean
generates patches of algae that can
be seen from high above. Those
images would confirm the need for
more efficient fertilizer practices."

In a terrestial ecosystem, the escape
of large quantities of nitrogen into
the atmosphere is apparent when
areas of lush vegetation develop
downwind from fields where
nitrogen fertilizer has been applied.
Excess nitrogen takes the form of
nitric oxide and ammonia and mixes
with clouds. When it rains, the areas
below are fertilized by the
precipitating nitrogen and become
perceptibly greener. Far from
benefiting the ecosystem,
fertilization upsets the balance of
plant species: some species respond
well to it, crowding out others that
may disappear altogether. This
imbalance has serious implications
for plant biodiversity.

High-Tech Help for
Poor Farmers
An efficient means of avoiding
excessive fertilizer applications is
precision agriculture, which requires
accurate maps of crop yields to help
farmers understand soil variation
and how much their fields can yield.
By significantly increasing
production efficiency, precision
agriculture could improve farmers'
incomes and reduce the harmful
effects of farming on the
environment. The cost of producing
crop yield maps is too high for
developing world farmers, but a
low-cost alternative is to make
accurate estimates of crop yields
based on satellite images (see
figure).

The amount of organic matter in the
soil affects crop production and also
has implications for carbon
sequestration. When excessive
amounts of carbon dioxide are
released into the atmosphere, they
contribute to global warming. In
carbon sequestration, the amount of
carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
diminishes because it is taken out of
the air and stored, for example, in
soil organic matter. Images taken
during the summer cycle, when not
much is planted in the Yaqui Valley,
may reveal how much organic
matter is left in the soil after decades
of intensive farming. Soil organic
matter can be built up through
conservation practices, and satellite
data could show which practices
work best in the region.

Farming for-Not
against-the
Environment
Satellite images can also tell how
much carbon dioxide is taken up by
crops in the Yaqui Valley. Says
Gregory Asner, also of the
University of Colorado, "Experts
believe that information on carbon

dynamics in the region could
provide the basis for establishing
policies to regulate the emission of
greenhouse gases in the Yaqui Valley
and become the model for
regulations in other regions."

If practices to improve the
environmental effects of farming can
be developed in the Yaqui Valley, it
is very likely they will work in
similar agricultural environments in
the developing world. The
application of techniques like
satellite imaging combined with
ground data to study a farming
community and its environs is
possible in the Yaqui Valley partly
because of the trust that has
developed over many years between
CIMMYT researchers and wheat
producers. If similar collaborative
research could be initiated in other
important wheat-producing areas of
the developing world, the prospects
for better production would
improve, and global warming
would be reduced.

Satellite imaging can show variation in wheat yields among and within farmers' fields. Ultimately, it can help
researchers design environmentally responsible farming practices for intensive agroecosystems.

54 CIMMYT Annual Report 2000-2001

%

CIMMYT Funding Trends

and Topics,

Funding Sources at a Glance
The governments and agencies that provided the lar
share of our funding in 2000 are shown in Figure 1. 1
contributions to CIMMYT's budget by CGIAR meml
nations, North and South, as well as foundations anc
advanced research institutes (in the public and priva
sectors), are presented in Figure 2. To achieve the five
research outputs of the CGIAR, CIMMYT allocated i
budget as shown in Figure 3.
Sources of income from grants are presented in the ti
(p. 57). Targeted funding continues to provide the bu
CIMMYT's research resources (Figure 4). The trend i
core unrestricted funding in relation to targeted
contributions continues to provide challenges to the
Center, as flexibility is reduced and core research on
management and use of genetic resources becomes h
to support. Full costing of projects is more important
ever, including accurate costing of indirect costs. Ind
costs are currently running at about 25%, whereas nE
overhead recovery is around 15%.

Funding Levels and Trends
Funding for 2000 was US$ 39.801 million (including
Center earned income), of which .', came from CG
investors and 17% from other sources. Expenditure x
US$ 39.261 million.
The budget in 2000 was higher than initially project
three reasons. First, our research portfolio is highly
relevant to the current goals of investors who have
traditionally supported international agricultural
research. CIMMYT's research and development actix
continue to help reduce poverty and improve livelih
across the developing world (see p. 58).

Second, CIMMYT has enhanced efforts to
support its research with nontraditional sources
of funding. The trend towards diversified sources
of income that was significant in 1999 has become
stronger in 2000-01. CIMMYT's partnerships with
nontraditional organizations such as foundations
and advanced research institutes in the public
and private sectors are expanding.

CIMMYT's alliances with advanced research
institutes take the form of partnerships, generally
with the public sector in the North and the South.
In the case of the former, CIMMYT is interested
in alliances that help us to more quickly develop
new, appropriate technologies and deliver them
to farmers' fields in developing countries. For the
latter, we are very cognizant of our role in
helping to create an enabling environment for
our partners in developing countries. A
significant component of CIMMYT's budget in
2000 (almost US$ 5 million) was flow-through
funding to our partners in the South; this
represents trust in CIMMYT by our partners and
trust with our investors.

Similarly, our interactions with the advanced
research institutes of the private sector have
become stronger. These interactions continue to
take the form of "win-win" alliances directed at
achieving the following outcomes:

* access to proprietary technologies that enable
CIMMYT to deliver research outcomes to
developing countries more quickly;
* the facilitated transfer of technology, research
products, and other benefits to the resource
poor; and
* the leverage of additional resources brought to
bear on challenges in developing countries.
A third reason that the Center's budget was
higher in 2000 than initially projected is that
CIMMYT has vigorously pursued partnerships
that enable scientists from developed countries to
work at CIMMYT sites worldwide and to make a
significant contribution to CIMMYT's research
agenda. This approach, known as "in-kind"
contributions, is perhaps best exemplified by the
current contribution from France (CIRAD, IRD,
INRA),* but there are a number of other
examples. Total income in this category for 2000
amounted to US$ 1.869 million.

Prospects for 2001
An important factor in the Center's budget and
cash flow scenario in 2000 was that the US dollar
gained in strength against almost all other
currencies in the world. CIMMYT managed
exchange rate losses of some US$ 2.2 million on
all sources of funds (unrestricted, restricted, and
special project). Against this trend, however, the
Mexican peso appreciated in value. With 50% of
CIMMYT's budget expended in pesos, the
Center was forced to produce an effective
"efficiency gain" of 5-7%.

The operation of a Center that has two major
plant breeding programs continues to pose
challenges for financial management,
particularly in regard to cash flow and
maintaining adequate working capital reserves.
CIMMYT is steadily increasing the level of
working capital through prudent budgetary
measures, but an additional injection is needed.
Currently we are exploring options to increase
access to working capital by an additional 30
days beyond the current level of 55 days. It is
important to note that CIMMYT is increasing
working capital reserves in a climate of uncertain
scheduling of disbursements by investors and
with no disruption to our research agenda.

We have also taken measures internally to
optimize the use of capital funds. For example,
we have implemented an internally administered
cost recovery system for the vehicle fleet to
ensure that capital funds are used responsibly
and equitably.

Our most pressing capital investment need is to
further develop Agua Fria, the new research site
that replaces the Poza Rica Research Station, an
important breeding site for lowland tropical
maize, which was destroyed by floods in October
1999. Research conducted at Agua Fria will help
CIMMYT to meet the needs of resource-poor
farmers cultivating 55 million hectares of maize
in Africa, Asia, and Latin America (about 70% of
the maize area in developing countries,
excluding Argentina, China, and South Africa).
Special assistance for purchasing and developing
the new site has been received from the CGIAR
Finance Committee (US$ 250,000) and Australia
(A$ 50,000), but an additional amount of up to
US$ 1 million is required for the station to
become fully operational.

Kenya, Government of
Korea, Republic of
Rural Development Administration
Mexico
SAGAR
Fideicomisos Instituidos en Relacion con la Agricultura
Fundacion Guanajuato Produce A.C.
Fundacion Hidalgo
Fundacion Sonora
Grupo Industrial Bimbo (Industrial quality in wheat)
ICAMEX (Maize and wheat improvement)
Miscellaneous Research Grants
Netherlands
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Norway
Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
OPEC Fund for International Development
Other
Other Foundations
Peru
National Institute of Natural Resources
Philippines
Bureau of Agriculture Research, Department of Agriculture
Portugal
Institute for International Scientific and
Technological Cooperation
Rockefeller Foundation
South Africa
Agricultural Research Council
National Department of Agriculture
Spain
Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentacion
AGROVEGETAL, S.A. (Durum and bread wheat breeding)
Sweden
Swedish International Development Agency
Switzerland
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
Novartis Foundation for Sustainable Development
Tajikistan, Republic of
Farm Privatisation Support Project
Thailand
Department of Agriculture
United Kingdom
Department for International Development
United Nations Development Programme
Africa Bureau
SEED
Uruguay
National Institue of Agricultural Research
USA
Cornell University
Hilton Foundation
Monsanto Company (Hybrid wheat)
Stanford University
United States Agency for International Development
United States Department of Agriculture
World Bank

Around one billion people in the developing world
live on less than one dollar per day (Table 1). These
are the poorest of the poor, populations living in
abject poverty and under extremely high levels of
food insecurity. Nearly two-thirds (62%) of those
struggling to survive on less than one dollar per day
live in South Asia, and another one-fifth (20%) live in
sub-Saharan Africa. Latin America accounts for 5% of
the world's absolute poor, with the vast majority
living in southern Mexico and Central America.
Across the developing world, the numbers of
absolute poor living in rural areas are
disproportionately concentrated in the lower
potential tropical production environments relative
to the more favorable subtropical and temperate
environments. Meeting the needs of the rural poor
continues to be of predominant importance to
CIMMYT, and we are also facing up to the challenge
of providing for the rapidly rising numbers of urban
poor. Rural poverty continues to be the overriding
concern in sub-Saharan Africa, Central America, and
South Asia, but urban poverty and urban food
insecurity are also escalating in South Asia.
Overall economic growth and price levels
(particularly food prices) influence urban poverty,
whereas several additional factors influence rural
poverty. Some are well known, such as rapid
population growth, dwindling access to resources,
and limited technological options. The effects on
rural poverty of new and emerging factors, such as
global climate change and the deterioration of

Table 1. Distribution of global population living below one
dollar per day, late 1990s

Population living on
Total less than US$1/day
population As percentage of
Region (millions) Millions total population
Latin America and Caribbean 423 49 12
West Asia and North Africa 204 5 3
Sub-Saharan Africa 388 169 44
South Asia 1,266 515 41
East and Southeast Asia 1,726 320 19
Source: World Bank (2000), World Development Indicators.

natural resources, are less well understood, although
it is clear that sustainable management of the rural
resource base can significantly enhance food security
and improve the livelihoods of the rural poor.
Given these circumstances, how can wheat and
maize research make a difference to the world's
poor? Together, CIMMYT's research and technology
development help to:
* ensure sufficient and stable food supplies for
subsistence farmers and poor rural households;
* improve the nutritional security of the poorest of
the poor;
* ensure adequate food supplies at affordable prices
for the urban poor; and
* promote sustainable management of natural
resources, especially in marginal production
environments.
Research that contributes specifically to these
objectives is described in this report; for additional
details see People and Partnerships (our medium-
term plan and project portfolio).
The geographic allocation of CIMMYT's research
resources (Table 2) is consistent with the regional
distribution of the world's poor. More than one-third
of our resources are spent in sub-Saharan Africa, the
region with the highest share of poor people in its
population (Table 1) and lowest share of trained
scientists and research infrastructure. South Asia
accounts for 22% of CIMMYT's resources, and
Central America, with the third highest share of the
global poor, accounts for 15%.

Table 2. Allocation of CIMMYT research resources
by region of the developing world

Percentage of
Region research resources
Central and Western Africa 4
Eastern and Southern Africa 33
Central and West Asia and North Africa 10
East and Southeast Asia 6
South Asia 22
Central America and Caribbean 15
South America 10
Total 100

Our Mission
CIMMYT is an international, non-profit, agricultural research and training
center dedicated to helping the poor in low-income countries. We help
alleviate poverty by increasing the profitability, productivity, and
sustainability of maize and wheat farming systems.

Focus
Work concentrates on maize and wheat, two crops vitally important to
food security. These crops provide about one-fourth of the total food
calories consumed in low-income countries, are critical staples for poor
people, and are an important source of income for poor farmers.

Partners
Our researchers work with colleagues in national agricultural research
programs, universities, and other centers of excellence around the world;
in the donor community; and in non-governmental organizations.

Activities
* Development and worldwide distribution of higher yielding maize
and wheat with built-in genetic resistance to important diseases,
insects, and other yield-reducing stresses.
Conservation and distribution of maize and wheat genetic resources.
Strategic research on natural resource management in maize- and
wheat-based cropping systems.
Development of new knowledge about maize and wheat.
Development of more effective research methods.
Training of many kinds.
Consulting on technical issues.

Impact
CIMMYT-related wheat varieties are planted on more than 64 million
hectares in low-income countries, representing more than three-fourths
of the area planted to modern wheat varieties in those countries.
Nearly half of the area planted to modern maize varieties in non-
temperate environments of developing countries is planted to
CIMMYT-related varieties.
Between 1987 and 1998, CIMMYT delivered nearly 40,000 shipments of
wheat seed and more than 20,000 shipments of maize seed to
researchers in developing and developed countries. These shipments,
which included improved materials developed by CIMMYT breeders
and accessions from our germplasm banks, represented a valuable
source of genetic resources for public and private research
organizations.
More than 9,000 researchers from around the world have benefited
from CIMMYT's training efforts. CIMMYT alumni now lead major
breeding programs, public and private, throughout the world.
Our information products and research networks improve the
efficiency of researchers in more than 100 countries.

Funding
CIMMYT wishes to thank the many governments and organizations that
help us fulfill our mission. We owe a special debt of gratitude to those who
support our core activities. The impacts described in this publication
would have been impossible to achieve without that support.

Location
Activities and impact extend throughout the world via 17 regional offices.
Headquarters are in Mexico. See contact information, p. 61.

"Our Visit

P.B. Ramkrishnan: The trip to CIMMYT
was a visionary investment in the future
for young, aspiring professionals like me.
This eye-opening experience will help me
to choose or bend the direction of my
research. The challenges for the third
world countries are still large, and this
trip further emphasized the need to take
this mounting challenge through working
closely with CGIAR scientists.

CIMMYT and the course...changed my
vision of agriculture, affected my perception
of the most pressing world problems, and
affected my research and thus possibly my
future. I am an electronic engineer, and my
perception of agriculture is biased
accordingly. My entrance into agriculture
has been through the attempt to understand
and model causal relationships. This is an
engineer-friendly process, but gaps remain
in my understanding of the agricultural
"big picture." I found that my perception of
the complexity of the most pressing world
problems-and underlying issues, such as
the AIDS crisis in Africa-has been
enhanced. My own research has benefited: I
have been able to incorporate results of
discussions in CIMMYT directly into my
on-farm research and have been exposed to
concepts, such as adaptability analysis, that
will enrich my dissertation research.

Visit CIMMYT at www.cimmyt.org.

Changed My Vision of Agriculture"

Graduate students from the University of Florida visited CIMMYT-Mexico in
July 2001 as part of a new class designed to heighten awareness of work at

Ayse Irmak: I was intrigued by the collar
quality protein maize program (QPM). the st
My primary interest about QPM was
the positive effects that might occur on rang
pregnant woman. In developed On re
countries, pregnant women can get
additional nutrients from pharmacies,
but what about a lady in Africa who
can't even buy enough food? At least
she can grow quality protein maize in
her little yard.

ternational research center. James Jones, a distinguished professor in
university's Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department,
borated with Jeff White of CIMMYT's Natural Resources Group to bring
udents to Mexico. The students, who are getting their degrees in a
e of disciplines, interacted with CIMMYT researchers in the field and lab.
turning to Florida, they wrote to CIMMYT about their visit.

John Bellow: I found the opportunity
to discuss my approach and
objectives with other researchers such
as Mauricio Bellon and Jorge Bolafios
to be invaluable. They provided
insight into the farming system of the
region from first-hand experience.
I was pleased that CIMMYT
recognizes the importance of
exposing young researchers to
ongoing efforts in the CGIAR to
address the problems of small-scale,
resource limited-farmers in the
developing world. Several of the
discussions motivated me to modify
my research to more effectively
address current issues. I encourage
the effort to promote broader
collaboration between CIMMYT and
university students.

David Carter: Participating students saw how a
research agenda can be constructed in a
culturally diverse environment among scientists
from many disciplines. CIMMYT is located in an
area characteristic of the developing world.
Consequently, the research has an immediate
focus and scientists are keenly aware of the
problems they aim to alleviate. CIMMYT
activities are more client-driven than research
conducted in a university setting, so results tend
to be well defined in terms of useful products
rather than conceptual or theoretical advances.
The tours and seminar series provided an
opportunity to learn about the broad range of
wheat and maize research being conducted at
the Center. The student presentations allowed
the class members to share their work with
CIMMYT scientists and gave them an
opportunity to practice their skills in a
professional setting.

Carlos Messina: The visit to CIMMYT
was an enlightening experience, from
the words of wisdom and hope from
Nobel Laureate Norman Borlaug to
the cutting-edge presentation in
molecular biology from Jean-Marcel
Ribaut. The experience exposed me to
technical issues as well as made me
question the relevance of my research
in the context of global problems in
agricultural research. I have been
exposed to a diverse array of methods
used in international agricultural
research, which all have the objective
of addressing global problems. I had
the chance to discuss approaches in
molecular biology, learn about
techniques for the study of germplasm-
by-environment (GxE) interactions,
and initiate collaborative research.